Men's Basketball: Northern Illinois dropped their season opener Friday with a 77-64 defeat at Nebraska Omaha. Aksel Bolin paced NIU with 11 points, while freshman Daveon Balls added 10 for the Huskies.
Women's Basketball: The Huskies started their year off Monday with a tight 45-42 exhibition win over Indiana Wesleyan, as Amanda Corral led NIU with 12 points and sank to critical free throws late. The squad kicked off their regular season Friday night in Iowa City, Iowa, when they dropped a 63-40 decision to the Iowa Hawkeyes.
Men's Soccer: Northern Illinois' season came to a close over the weekend, but not without a run to the MAC Championship match. On Friday, the Huskies held West Virginia scoreless for the second time in 2012 en route to a 1-0 win over the Mountaineers in the semi-finals. However, No. 1 Akron ended NIU's run Sunday afternoon with a 2-0 victory in the title match to clinch the conference crown.
Wrestling: Northern Illinois kicked off their home schedule in impressive fashion Saturday, grabbing the program's 500th win and knocking off Big Ten foe Indiana en route to a 3-0 performance at the Huskie Duals. The day began with a 36-3 win over Tiffin in which the Huskies won each of the first three matches. They followed that up with a strong 26-12 win over South Dakota State for the 500th win in program history. The day was not complete, though, until NIU got a 19-13 win over Indiana - the team's first over a Big Ten opponent since 2009.
Football: The Huskies moved to 9-1 on the year with a 63-0 shutout victory over the UMass Minutemen. QB Jordan Lynch combined for over 300 yards of total offense, while the NIU defense forced four turnovers. The shutout was the first by NIU since Sept. 27, 2008, when they blanked Eastern Michigan, 37-0. Men's Basketball: Northern Illinois opened their season with a commanding 89-56 win against Aurora in an exhibition contest . Six Huskies scored in double figures, including 12 each from Kevin Gray and Mike Davis.
Men's Soccer: Northern Illinois clinched a spot in the MAC Tournament for the second consecutive season during the week, but not without some added drama. The week began with a 2-0 loss at Western Michigan, putting NIU in a "win or go home" situation Friday at Buffalo. However, Northern punched their ticket to Akron with a tight 1-0 win against the Bulls.
Wrestling: NIU opened their season Saturday at the EMU Open by putting 13 wrestlers on the podium. Matt Mougin led the way with a third place finish at 174 pounds. Meanwhile, Jared Torrence placed fourth at heavyweight and Rob Jillard took fifth at 149, in addition to Derek Elmore (125), Ethan Davis (141), Caleb Busson (174) Shane Rosenberry (184) and Arber Bebo (197) each taking sixth in their respective brackets. On the fresh/soph side, Shawn Scott (1st - 197), Andrew Morse (3rd - 157), Gabe Morse (4th - 141), Braun Marquez (5th - 125) and Bryan Loughlin (5th - 184) all placed for Northern.
Football: The Huskies extended their winning streak to eight games Saturday with a 48-34 victory at Western Michigan. After trailing 21-17 at halftime, the NIU offense exploded for 31 points in the second half to put away the Broncos. Jordan Lynch threw for 274 yards and rushed for 136 in the win. Men's Soccer: Northern Illinois notched two huge wins during the past week to improve their standing heading into the final week of the regular season. On Wednesday, the Huskies scored a 1-0 overtime win at Northwestern following Charlie Oliver's goal in the 91st minute. Their Saturday match against West Virginia followed a similar script, with Isaac Kannah scoring in the 84th minute for a 1-0 win over the Mountaineers.
Women's Soccer: Northern Illinois' season came to an end over the week after returning to the MAC Tournament. The Huskies punched their ticket to the conference tournament Thursday with a 2-1 victory at Toledo, their first against the Rockets since 2003. Yet, the Huskies' postseason run came to an end Sunday when they fell 2-0 at second-seeded Central Michigan.
Football: The Huskies won their 16th game in the last 17 and improved to 7-1 in 2012 with a convincing 37-7 victory at Akron. Along with Jordan Lynch's 131 rushing yards, the NIU defense held the Zips to 199 yards of total offense, including only 42 rushing yards on 37 carries. Men's Soccer: Northern Illinois' offense continued to struggle this week as they completed a 0-1-1 week. On Wednesday, the Huskies could not complete the comeback on the road as they fell to Valparaiso, 2-1. Three days later, NIU and Bowling Green battled to a 0-0 tie in DeKalb.
Volleyball: The Huskies dropped two close road matches over the weekend. NIU lost to Ohio on Friday, 3-1, after taking the first set in a battle of last year's two division winners. Northern faced a similar result the next night with a 3-1 loss at Kent State.
Women's Soccer: Northern Illinois kept its MAC Tournament hopes alive over the weekend by splitting their two road matches. The Huskies grabbed a huge win Friday with a 1-0 win against Kent State when Kate Wirthlin scored in the 71st minute. Two days later, the tables were turned when NIU lost to Ohio, 1-0.
Men's Golf: Northern Illinois put two golfers in the top 10 of the Earl Yestingmeier Invitational. Nick Huggins led the team with a tie for fifth, while Matt Gorman tied for seventh.
Men's Tennis: Dor Amir led the way for the Huskies by advancing to the round of 16 at the ITA Midwest Regional in East Lansing, Mich. Maksym Bartiuk also made it to the main draw, while Max Phillips fell just short after blazing through the qualifying draw.
Women's Golf: Northern Illinois took 10th place as a team at the The Preview at Longaberger Golf Club. Allie Parthie paced the Huskies with a fifth place finish, while Connie Ellett and Taylor Ellett took second and third in the Huskie contingent.
Women's Tennis: Northern Illinois placed three in the top three of their respective brackets over the weekend at the ITA Regional in Rockford, Ill. Mary Malkin, Cristina Alvarez and Haley Dekkinga each took top three finishes in singles, while
Football: The Huskies became bowl eligible Saturday with a dominant 45-3 Homecoming victory over Buffalo. Jordan Lynch combined for 361 yards of total offense, while the Huskie defense forced three turnovers on the day. The win marks the fifth straight season that NIU reached the six-win mark. Men's Soccer: Northern Illinois battled two of the nation's top five programs this week, but could not pull out a win in either match. The Huskies battled No. 4 Marquette on Tuesday, but lost 1-0 after the Golden Eagles scored in the 80th minute. NIU returned to MAC play on Saturday when they fell to No. 3 Akron, 2-0.
Women's Soccer: Northern Illinois dropped two close conference matches over the weekend in their final homestand of the year. NIU rallied from a 2-0 deficit against MAC leader Miami (Ohio) Friday, but a last second goal by the Redhawks resulted in a 3-2 defeat. Two days later, the Huskies took on Ball State on Senior Day. Following a 71-minute lightning delay in the 25th minute, the Cardinals emerged with a 1-0 victory.
Football: Northern Illinois extended their winning streak to five games with a 35-23 win at Ball State to keep the Bronze Stalk. After trailing the Cardinals 23-21 late in the fourth quarter, Jordan Lynch found Akeem Daniels for a 54-yard touchdown for the go-ahead score. About one and a half minutes later, Lynch outran the BSU defense for a 71-yard scoring run to put the game away. The junior QB combined for 402 yards of total offense in the win.Men's Soccer: NIU improved to 2-0 in MAC play with a 1-0 win against the Hartwick Hawks Saturday in DeKalb. The match's lone tally came in the 68th minute when Gael Rivera beat Hartwick's goaltender with a hard header.
Volleyball: The Huskies split their two weekend matches as they near the midway point of the conference season. Thursday saw the Huskies drop a 3-0 loss to Western Michigan at Victor E. Court in a match that was closer than the score indicated. NIU rebounded with a 3-0 sweep of Miami (Ohio) in which they notched a season-high .412 hitting percentage.
Football: Northern Illinois opened MAC play on a positive note Saturday with a 55-24 dismantling of Central Michigan at Huskie Stadium. Leighton Settle ran for 152 yards and Jordan Lynch gained 144 yards on the ground as a part of NIU's 407 total rushing yards. In addition, a fake punt by Ryan Neir and fake field goal touchdown by Mathew Sims sparked NIU to victory.Men's Soccer: NIU started conference play with a 2-0 win on the road against the Florida Atlantic Owls. After struggling offensively in the non-conference slate, the Huskies got goals from Isaac Kannah and James Stevenson. Jordan Godsey shut out FAU for his third shutout of the year and 29th of his career.
Volleyball: The Huskies returned home after a month on the road with two resounding wins in conference play. On Friday, NIU toppled Ball State, 3-1, while holding the advantage in most statistical categories. That advantage carried over into Saturday night when they swept Toledo, 3-0.
Women's Soccer: The Huskies went 1-0-1 during their weekend on the road. NIU grabbed their first MAC win of the year Friday with a 1-0 win against Akron, as Frances Boukidis found the back of the net in the 14th minute for the lone goal of the game. Two days later, the Huskies nearly got their second conference win, but were forced to settle for a 1-1 tie at Buffalo.
Cross Country: Northern Illinois finished 11th out of 51 teams at the Sean Earl Lakefront Invitational in Chicago. Courtney Oldenburg paced the Huskies with a 20th place finish at 18:09, which was her second-best 5K time in her four seasons at NIU.
Women's Tennis: The Huskies claimed five titles at the DePaul Invitational in Chicago. Arantza De La Torre/Nelle Youel and Haley Dekkinga/Cristina Alvarez each took home titles in doubles Flight A, while Maria Rozo/Stephanie McDonald won in Flight B. In singles, Youel and Dekkinga tied for the Flight B singles title and Mary Malkin won the consolation title in Flight C.
Football: Northern Illinois captured a huge victory on their home turf Saturday with a 30-23 win against Kansas. Trailing 23-13 early in the fourth quarter, Jordan Lynch led a 17-point comeback in the final stanza to give NIU their second comeback win in as many weeks. Lynch combined for 369 yards offensively, while the defense tallied four sacks of KU's Dayne Crist.Men's Soccer: NIU lost both of their matches at New Mexico's Lobo Invitational in Albuquerque, N.M. Friday, the Huskies went into their fourth overtime game of the year against Denver. However, the Pioneers found the back of the net in the 109th minute for a 3-2 win. Northern ended their weekend with a 3-0 loss to the No. 5 and host Lobos.
Football: Northern Illinois hit the road for the first time in 2012 and escaped West Point, N.Y., with a 41-40 victory over the Army Black Knights. Jordan Lynch combined for 467 yards of total offense - the third-highest single game total in NIU history - and the defense came up with a huge stop inside of two minutes to cap off the rally. The win was also NIU's first road opener win since 2007.Men's Soccer: NIU split its two matches over the weekend at the Northwestern Lakeside Classic. They opened the tournament with a tough 1-0 loss in the annual LeWang Cup match against Milwaukee. However, they rebounded Sunday with a 2-0 victory over Iona.
Women's Soccer: The Huskies had a dominant effort Sunday at home with a 4-1 win against South Dakota. Courtney Ksiazek, Cori Frankenberg, Allie McBride and Kate Wirthlin all found the back of the net in the win.
Women's Tennis: Nelle Youel and Arantza De La Torre each won their singles flight over the weekend at the Drake Invitational in Des Moines, Iowa. Combined, NIU went 14-7 in singles and 5-4 in doubles play.
Football: Northern Illinois quarterback Jordan Lynch and running back Leighton Settle powered the Huskies to a 35-7 win over UT Martin Saturday night at Huskie Stadium. The duo combined for 166 rushing yards on 32 carries for three touchdowns as both averaged over five yards per carry against the Skyhawks for NIU's first win of the 2012 campaign. Men's Soccer: Northern Illinois tied both of their matches in the NIU adidas Invitational. On Friday, Northern and Rhode Island battled to a 0-0 tie, with the Huskies limiting the Rams to only one shot. Sunday followed with a 1-1 tie against Drake.
Cross Country: Senior Courtney Oldenburg broke the school's 34-year old 5K record Friday at the NIU Open as the Northern Illinois cross country team finished in third place. On the day, NIU easily defeated DePaul, UIC and Chicago State. The Huskies' trailed only Northwestern and Marquette in the final standings, falling mere points behind the Golden Eagles.
Women's Soccer: The Huskies again split their weekend matches on the road. The Huskies battled the Northwestern Wildcats and the elements on Friday, but were defeated 2-0 in Evanston. They would rebound on Sunday with a 1-0 win against Eastern Illinois courtesy of a fourth minute goal from Cori Frankenberg.
Football: The Huskies pushed Iowa to the brink Saturday in Chicago, but fell in heartbreaking fashion as the Hawkeyes scored late to claim an 18-17 victory. NIU led for the majority of the game and held a 17-9 lead going into the fourth quarter. However, Iowa's Damon Bullock scored the decisive points on a 23-yard run with 2:15 left in the game. The Huskie defense, though, was a huge bright spot in the game, collecting six sacks of James Vandenberg and limited the Hawkeyes to 268 total yards. Men's Soccer: Northern Illinois lost in excruciating fashion Friday night when they fell to Green Bay in double overtime, 2-1. The Huskies' lone goal of the game came in the 69th minute when James Stevenson found Gael Rivera for a quick shot that tied the match at 1-1. Yet, the Phoenix won the match with a winner in the 102nd minute.
Cross Country: Northern Illinois proved how big of a difference one year could make Saturday, as they claimed the team title at the UIC Opener. Senior Courtney Oldenburg earned her first career win on the day to lead the Huskies to a first-through-fourth finish on the Horse Lake Trail, as Ali Olson, Leah Raffety and Jamie Burr sealed the win for the Huskies.
Drew Jeskey, a member of the NIU men's soccer team from 2005-08, was named to the 2011 Brisbane Select Team while playing professionally in Australia. Jeskey is one of four players from the Wolves FC club to be named to the 11-player Select Team, which is the equivalent to an All-Star team in American sports. Wolves FC will play Rochedale Rovers in the Brisbane Premier League Grand Final on Thursday, Sept. 29.
Just as college football has two different top-25 polls, the college soccer world also has a number of different polls ranking the top teams in the country. After a 5-0 start to the season, the Huskies appear in all four polls released as of Tuesday. In the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) and Soccer America polls, the Huskies come in at number 13. In other polls, the Huskies check in at 25th according to Soccer Times and 26th in the College Soccer News rankings.
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