First-year Matt Aucunas is not one to bask in the limelight of his athletic success. If you try to strike up a conversation about his impressive 26th place finish at last weekend’s golf conference championships at Wooster, odds are he will sidestep the question and try to wrestle somebody, hypothesize how six of him could take on two Michael Jordans or perhaps recall his Wednesday night mischievousness.

The Chicago native’s finish out of 45 competitors capped off a golf season that saw Aucunas rise to the top of the Oberlin ranks on his first competitive match back in March. Although he was recruited for soccer, Aucunas was persuaded by soccer and golf coach Blake New to come out for the spring sport. He figured playing golf for free could be fun.

“I had it in my head that I wanted to play golf, but I didn’t know anything about the team and how the season would be like.”

Aucunas is no stranger to the sport. He has held a club since the ripe old age of five and has consistently played weekend golf with his twin brother ever since. Aucunas was always interested in playing competitively before college, but there were always complications.

“High school golf was during the same time as [high school] soccer. The athletic director wouldn’t let me play both.”

The wiry, energetic player had his first taste of college golf on the team’s spring break trip to Pinehurst in North Carolina. Aucunas was enjoying himself before the tournament even began.

“It was perfect weather and we were playing for free on the nicest golf course in the country. It was like vacation and not preseason,” said Aucunas.

And what a preseason he had. When New set up the line-up for the first match, Aucunas was listed at the number one spot, much to his surprise. He was quick to squash the glamour of this position though, citing that the Oberlin team is not about competing against each other but about having a good time.

“The team is made up of a bunch of guys who like to have fun. They are not assholes trying to compete for the top position. The team was very supportive because the spot doesn’t really matter that much,” said Aucunas.

Although nerves got the better of Aucunas in the first round at Pinehurst, he soon found his rhythm and was able to finish the break on a more positive note.

“I was nervous in the first round. I had never been in that situation before. I was really tense and it screwed up my game,” explained Aucunas.

By the end of the season, Aucunas had long conquered his nerves. He was full of confidence for the North Coast Athletic Conference championships, shooting rounds of 80, 84 and 85 over the two-day tournament. It was a grueling weekend for all the Obies, shooting 27 holes a day. Junior Matt Standeven shot an 81, 85 and 87, which was good enough for a tie for 28th place. Juniors Jon Pisani and Saul Flores finished in a tie for 37th and 39th place, respectively, followed by first-year Skyler Dum at the 42nd spot.

The highlight of the weekend was when Oberlin beat out Kenyon for eighth place. After a frustrating season, the team was able to improve and salvage something in the last tournament. Despite the team’s struggles, Aucunas explained that the team should not be disappointed in their performance.

“The season was not disappointing because we had a good time. Oberlin is not built to compete with the best in conference. They recruit, we don’t,” said Aucunas.

Oberlin’s laidback approach to the season has resulted in everyone enjoying their golf. This is something that Oberlin sports fans don’t see when they look at the weekend results. The results may show signs of crisis, but Oberlin is not a normal golf school. And Aucunas says he wouldn’t trade that in for all the golf championships.

“We’re out there with a bunch of friends and having a good time about it. We are trying hard not to take ourselves too seriously. I wouldn’t trade what we have in for an asshole team and a hard coach.”

The team mentality has made it easy to play, especially when players made mistakes. Aucunas also was appreciative of the assistance by Standeven over the course of the season.

“When he came on he showed me how you have to be calm in the moment. He looked on the bright side of things,” said Aucunas.

Last weekend may have ended the Yeomen’s short season, but Aucunas remains adamant about playing next year although he is unsure how many players they will have.

“I definitely want to keep playing if the program stays alive. We are losing three people, though. We will need two more at least.”

Playing sports is all about having fun, and Aucunas spent the spring doing just that. He recalls one of the more interesting moments was wrestling his coach, with whom he was proud to develop a greater relationship.

“Blake spent a lot of time with me on the course. In North Carolina, he tried to block me from entering a door and I asked if he wanted to wrestle and he accepted. It was a draw, I couldn’t take him down,” Aucunas laughed.

Not much seems to hold back this young Oberlin prodigy, who is always looking for a challenge.