Some teams like to ease into the spring season, warming up to their competition along with the rising temperatures outside. Other teams like to spring into action.

Northwestern’s men’s golf team lies in the latter category. Building off their fall season, the Wildcats opened their spring schedule with a bang, capturing the Big Ten Match Play Championship.

“Our fall performance was very up-and-down,” said coach Pat Goss, whose team had first- and second-place tournament finishes to go along with 12th- and 13th-place results in the fall. “This win just goes to show that we can perform with the other powerful schools when we play consistently and to our potential.”

Still, the team is eyeing bigger prizes over the course of the season after qualifying for the NCAA National Championships last spring. While it was the first time the Cats had qualified for the postseason since 2006, it was NU’s 10th appearance under Goss, a four-time Big Ten Coach of the Year.

This year the Cats are lead by 2009 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Eric Chun, the reigning Big Ten individual champion. A sophomore from South Korea, Chun was the first freshman to win the season-ending conference tournament in 23 years.

“Eric has the opportunity to be at the top of the game,” Goss said. “The physical tools and techniques are there. Now it’s up to him to put in that concerted effort to stay focused and prepared.”

Chun’s golf prowess extends beyond the collegiate scene. Last summer he fell just short in a playoff that would have qualified him for the U.S. Open. In November Chun finished second at the Asian Amateur Championship, one place away from a earning an invitation to the Masters, but good enough to receive a spot in the International Final Qualifying for the 2010 British Open, which he will play for in mid-March.

“A focused Eric Chun is a powerful golfer,” Goss said. “When he consistently demonstrates preparation and concentration, not only could he be the best golfer in the Big Ten, he could be one of the strongest golfers in the country.”

While Chun figures to be a powerhouse for NU this spring, the entire team is primed to contend after losing just one senior from last year’s squad. Senior David Lipsky was part of a formidable one-two punch with Chun last year, and he was named Big Ten Player of the Week after notching a 4-0 record at the Big Ten Match Play Championship, including a decisive victory against second-seeded Iowa that helped launch NU into the final round.

Junior Josh Dupont manned the No. 1 spot for NU at the Match Play Championship, while senior Jonathan Bowers, sophomore Sam Chien and freshman Nick Losole helped round out a balanced tournament lineup along with Chun and Lipsky.

“We need at least one or two players to establish themselves at the top of their game and carry this team,” Goss said. “But when we maintain a concentrated mindset and play our game, we’ve shown that we can compete with just about any team in the country.”[email protected]