Hoosiers look to be a presence in Big Ten

Last season was a learning experience for the IU men's golf team. This time around, the Hoosiers mean business.\nEven with a freshman class that at one time held Golfstat's top ranking, few could have expected the mark the Hoosiers made last season in the Big Ten, despite a slow start. \nBeginning with their opening tournament of last season, the Hoosiers were led by a young and inexperienced lineup. By the end of the fall, IU's inexperience was apparent, as the talented but raw lineup netted zero top-five finishes. \nThen things turned around in the spring. The Hoosiers began finding themselves near the top of the leaderboard nearly every Sunday in the most critical stretch of the season. The team's two wins -- at the Boilermaker Invitational and the Fossum/Spartan Invitational -- came on the home courses of two Big Ten foes in the heart of their conference schedule. The Hoosiers proved they were for real.\n"I think (the other Big Ten schools) know we can sneak up on people," sophomore Brandon Pike said. "If we're getting to the top of that leaderboard, they're gonna be thinking about us for sure."\nAs most of the conference's better teams return many of their same players, IU will again have a tough road to a Big Ten championship. \nAt the end of last season, five Big Ten teams finished in the top 50 in Golfstat's team rankings, including Minnesota (No. 23) and Northwestern (No. 24). In-state rival Purdue held No. 39, and IU finished one spot higher than Illinois in 47th. Minnesota finished third in last season's National Championships. Defending Big Ten Champion Northwestern finished 25th in the event, and Purdue just missed the cut to make it to the championship. \nIU coach Mike Mayer said he doesn't mind playing in such a talented conference.\n"It's always nice to see the best competition you can see," he said. "We can't control what they do anyway. All we can do is control ourselves." \nThe Hoosiers will see good competition this year, as the conference's top-ranked individuals all return to their respective teams. Northwestern brings back individual Big Ten Champion Chris Wilson and teammate David Merkow. The tandem ranked 80th and 77th respectively in the Golfstat rankings. Reigning Les Bolstad Award winner Bronson La'Cassie sat at 62nd in the rankings and will return to Minnesota this season. No. 69-ranked Pariya Junhasavasdikul will again compete for the Boilermakers, and IU sophomore Jorge Campillo -- ranked No. 76 -- will seek to build on his Big Ten Freshman of the Year season.\nLast season, the Hoosiers' hot streak ended prematurely when the team finished sixth in the Big Ten Championship. Even though their second tournament championship came just the week before, Mayer accredits their lackluster Big Ten performance to his team's need to peak early in order to make the NCAA Tournament. Avoiding this same fate will be essential if the Hoosiers wish to win the school's ninth conference championship. Sophomore Seth Brandon said the team is ready for the challenge.\n"We want to go out and do the best that we can," he said. "Hopefully things will take care of themselves and we can do the talking with our clubs"