MAC CHAMPIONSHIP
Location: Nashport, Ohio (Virtues Golf Course)
Format: 36-holes Friday, 18-holes Saturday and Sunday
Par: 72 
Distance: 7,221-yards
Participants: Akron, Ball State, Bowling Green, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Miami, NIU, Ohio, Toledo
NIU Lineup: 1. Thomas DeMarco; 2. Charlie Cameron; 3. Jordan Less; 4. Salvador Rocha; 5. Paul Schlimm

DeKALB - The NIU men's golf team begins its postseason this weekend when it takes on the Mid-American Conference in the MAC Championship at Virtues Golf Course in Nashport, Ohio. The three-day event will see the nine-team field play 72 holes for the chance at the MAC's automatic NCAA Regional berth.

The first day of competition, featuring 36 holes of play, will begin Friday at 7 a.m. Central time with the Huskies teeing off against Miami University at hole No. 1 while the third and fourth rounds will take place Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

In the last two seasons, the Huskies have finished fourth at MAC Championship. Salvador Rocha is the lone Huskie that played in last year's championship with the then-freshman finishing tied for 31st, counting three of his four scores towards NIU's final tally

Northern Illinois University is coming off of a 14th place finish at the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate, falling one spot in the final round after entering the round just five strokes shy of the top-10. 

However, Jordan Less continued his strong freshman campaign at Ohio State's Scarlet course, tying for 14th to record his second top-20 finish in the Huskies last three tournaments. The Elmhurst, Ill. native entered the Kepler with the best scoring average by a freshman in the MAC.

As a team, NIU enters the tournament with a 298.53 stroke average per round, its first sub-300 average for the Huskies entering the postseason since the 2012 MAC Tournament.

Rain and thunderstorms are forecasted for both Saturday and Sunday with an 80 percent chance of precipitation given on Saturday.

Virtues Golf Club has been ranked as one of Golf Digest's Top-100 Public Golf Courses, as well as the top public course in the state of Ohio. Designed by the Arthur Hills firm, who has built or redesigned over 300 courses including The Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, the course features wide rolling fairways framed by trees and panoramic views around all the bends of the course.

NCAA Regional play begins Monday, May 15 and will continue until Wednesday, May 17. The NCAA Men's Golf Championship will be hosted at Rich Harvest Farms, the Home of the Huskies, May 26-31 in Sugar Grove, Ill. Purchase your tickets today on NIUHuskies.com/Tickets or by calling (815) 753-PACK (7225).

The tournament field will be announced on Thursday, May 4 live on The Golf Channel.