The young ISU men’s golf team fall season has ended, and the spring should only bring improvement with a squad filled with freshmen and sophomores.

One upperclassman — junior and team leader Drew Dalziel — was the one consistent player on the team this fall, and he said he wasn’t happy with how the fall season turned out.

“It was kind of a disappointment,” Dalziel said. “We started and ended with a last-place finish. That doesn’t make anybody happy.”

The Cyclones began their season playing in the Notre Dame Invitational, finishing in a disappointing 15th place. The team placed last in the Big 4 Championship, which showcased Iowa teams.

In its second tournament, the team had a seventh-place finish at the Adams Cup. A bright spot in the Adams Cup was freshman Chris Baker, who, in his second collegiate tournament, finished in a tie for 13th place.

Baker stepped up for the Cyclones this fall as he emerged as a consistent No. 2 golfer for the team throughout the season.

“Chris played better at the beginning of the year, and I think he got tired at the end of the year,” said coach Jay Horton.

Another freshman who made an impact was Joe Cermak, who had a tie for fourth place at the Big 4 Championship to end the year.

“Joe improved a lot from the first to the last tournament,” Horton said.

Looking forward to the spring, the Cyclone’s youngsters will have a lot more experience in collegiate golf and won’t settle for mediocrity.

“These guys aren’t satisfied,” Horton said.

Dalziel said the freshman played well.

“They sure stepped it up and played better than I expected,” Dalziel said.

In the Big 4 Championship, Dalziel tied for 2nd in the event and Cermak tied for 4th. Dalziel had the lead after two rounds and settled for second after losing to Drake’s Jeff Berkshire in a playoff.

The team’s focus now turns to the offseason in which it has already started lifting weights. Its offseason workout consists of back and leg lifts along with running three times a week.

“Right now they’re resting the mind. They’ve basically been competing since February,” Horton said. “This time of year I’m not worried about what they do on the golf course. I don’t really worry about their swing until after Christmas break.”

Though the fall season was a bit of a disappointment, the team did have some positives — experience being the biggest.

“It’s kind of hard to come up with a plus, but we gained a lot of experience for our young guys,” Dalziel said.

“We only have room for improvement, but we expect to play better in the spring.”

Horton said the team is better than what it showed.

“I know there’s a lot of talent on this young team; we just need to perform at a higher level,” Horton said.

The spring season is larger and more competitive than the fall and the experience that the team has gained will hopefully show as the young players continue to grow.

“I don’t want to set mediocre goals,” Horton said. “I don’t like short-selling goals. I want us to be a lot more competitive.”

The spring season will tee off Feb. 14 in Orlando, Fla., at the UCF/Rio Pinar Intercollegiate tournament.