The spring is officially here as the NIU softball program kicks its 2023 season off this week! Along with softball, seven other Huskie teams are in action. Don’t miss out on the fun! Simply click the links below to follow along.
Men’s Basketball
Tuesday, Feb. 7: vs. Ohio, 7 p.m. – ESPN+ | Live Stats | Live Audio
Saturday, Feb. 11: vs. Western Michigan, 3 p.m. – ESPN3 | Live Stats | Live Audio
Winners of five of their last six games, the NIU men’s basketball team returns home for a pair of games this week as the Huskies host Ohio on Tuesday (Feb. 7) and Western Michigan on Saturday (Feb. 11). Last time out, NIU earned its fourth consecutive road win with an 86-78 victory at Bowling Green. David Coit scored a team-high 21 points while Zarique Nutter added 18 as the Huskies never trailed against the Falcons. NIU comes into the week fifth in the MAC with a 6-4 conference record, just one game behind Ball State for fourth in the league.
Women’s Basketball
Wednesday, Feb. 8: vs. Akron, 6 p.m. – ESPN+ | Live Stats | Live Audio
Saturday, Feb. 11: at Ohio, 12 p.m. – ESPN3 | Live Stats | Live Audio
NIU women’s basketball returns to the Convocation Center Wednesday night to host Akron for the Play 4 Kay Pink Game at 6 p.m. The Huskies are coming off a 72-62 win at Buffalo last Saturday, which snapped a five-game losing streak for NIU. A’Jah Davis led the Huskies with 18 points and 21 rebounds, which tied a career-high. Janae Poisson and Chelby Koker each added 15 points. The Huskies won last season’s meeting against Akron at the Convocation Center 79-67. Koker scored her 1,000th career point in the victory and had a game-high 28 points. On Saturday, the Huskies go on the road to face Ohio. NIU beat the Bobcats in DeKalb 78-66 on Jan. 14. Davis had a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds as Koker added 13 points and five assists. A full preview of each game will be available on NIUHuskies.com later in the week.
Track & Field
Friday, Feb. 10: at GVSU Big Meet – Live Stats | Live Video
The NIU women’s track and field team heads to Allendale, Mich., on Friday, Feb. 10, to compete in the GVSU Big Meet. The Huskies are coming off a trip to Notre Dame’s Meyo Invitational where Scout Regular earned a runner-up finish in the 60-meter hurdles, running the fastest time in the Mid-American Conference this season at 8.44 seconds. Skylynn Blue ran the league’s second-best time in the 200 at Notre Dame with a time of 24.50 seconds and Kadeja Campbell posted the fourth-fastest time in the 400, running 55.57.
Wrestling
Friday, Feb. 10: vs. Northwestern, 7 p.m. – ESPN+
Second in the MAC West and No. 16 in the NWCA Mid-Major Top 20 poll, NIU has an opportunity to earn a statement win as No. 13 Northwestern comes to town 7 p.m. on Friday. The dual will broadcast live on ESPN+.
NIU plans to build off a thrilling 15-14 victory over Buffalo last Saturday. The Huskies opened the Beauty and the Beast dual with back-to-back wins before Jaivon Jones recorded a bonus-point win over Jack Marlow to give the Huskies a 10-0 lead. Buffalo mounted a comeback however, taking a two-point lead with the heavyweights on deck. NIU’s 285 starter Terrese Aaron put the team on his back with a critical 9-6 win over Gregory Hodulick to lift the Huskies above the Bulls 15-14.
Softball
Friday, Feb. 10: vs. Memphis, 11 a.m.
Friday, Feb. 10: vs. Arizona State, 4 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 11: vs. CSUN, 5 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 11: vs. Notre Dame, 6:30 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 12: at San Diego State, 1:30 p.m. – Live Stats
The Huskie softball team is officially back in action this Friday as the team heads west to sunny California to compete in the SDSU Season Kickoff hosted by San Diego State University. The Huskies return a plethora of talent from last year’s roster. 10 upperclassmen, including NFCA All-Region honoree Sam Mallinder, will hit the diamond this spring. Additionally, the squad welcomed 11 newcomers who are sure to aide NIU in its quest for a championship.
NIU’s tournament run commences Friday against Memphis at 11 a.m. CT before it takes on Arizona State at 4 p.m. CT the same day. On Saturday, the Huskies will face Cal State Northridge at 5 p.m. CT and Notre Dame at/around 6:30 p.m. CT. Both the Aztecs and Fighting Irish qualified for NCAA Regionals last season.
Men’s Tennis
Friday, Feb. 10 at Creighton, 12:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 11 at Omaha, 1 p.m.
Following a weekend off, the NIU men’s tennis team takes its 4-1 record on the road to Omaha, Neb. for a pair of matches this weekend. The Huskies will take on Creighton on Friday, Feb. 10, before visiting Omaha on Saturday, Feb. 11. NIU has won four consecutive matches, including three-straight sweeps with a 7-0 victory over Chicago State (Jan. 27) along with 7-0 and 4-0 wins against Cardinal Stritch (Jan. 29). Christopher Norlin has a perfect 4-0 record in singles matches this spring.
Women’s Tennis
Saturday, Feb. 11: vs. Valparaiso, 10 a.m. – Nelson Tennis Center at Chick Evans Field House | Live Scores (TBA)
Northern Iowa, Saturday, Feb. 11, 3 p.m. – Nelson Tennis Center at Chick Evans Field House | Live Scores (TBA)
The NIU women’s tennis team takes on Valparaiso and Northern Iowa in a doubleheader Saturday at the Nelson Tennis Center at Chick Evans Field House. The Huskies are 3-4 on the season after splitting a pair of matches last Thursday in Wisconsin. NIU dropped a 5-2 decision to No. 25 Wisconsin in the morning in Madison, then traveled to Milwaukee where they came away with a 5-2 win over Marquette.
Freshman Nataly Ninova improved her singles record to a team-best 6-1 on the season with a pair of wins at the No. 5 singles position, including a 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 victory over Wisconsin’s Ariel Johnson. NIU’s Reagan Welch clinched the Marquette win as she came back after losing the second set to win the third set tiebreaker, 7-5.
Gymnastics
Sunday, Feb. 12: at Ball State, 12 p.m. – Live Scores | ESPN+
After recording a big win over Kent State, and its third consecutive 195-plus score, last Saturday, the NIU gymnastics (6-2 overall, 2-1 MAC) team heads to Muncie, Indiana for a league match-up against Ball State. The Cardinals are 2-0 in the league and are coming off a 196.300 score last week in a quad meet win over Pitt, SEMO and Fisk.
In Saturday’s Beauty & the Beast Meet in the NIU Convocation Center, junior bars and beam specialist Alyssa Al-Ashari won both events, scoring a career high 9.925 on bars and adding a 9.875 to finish first on balance beam. Sophomore Emmalise Nock capped off the Huskies’ win with a 9.950 on floor exercise, the highest score by a Huskie gymnast this season, as the NIU floor squad posted a season high 49.325.