Talk about jet lag.

The NIU volleyball team has some serious traveling time ahead of it as it leaves Buffalo tonight. The Huskies will jump on a plane to Cleveland, drive to Buffalo, then to Akron, then back to Cleveland to get back on a plane and head for home. Throw a couple of volleyball games into the mix and they are in for a heck of a weekend.

Tonight at 6 p.m., the Huskies will face the Buffalo Bulls. The Bulls (12-7, 3-3 MAC) currently hold the same conference record as the Huskies. However, NIU (9-10, 3-3) has the advantage of coming into the game with a 3-0 winning streak, whereas the Bulls came out of their last three games 2-1.

The Huskies have done well in past games played against the Bulls. Last year, the Huskies emerged victorious after competing against the Bulls at home. But as they say, it’s a new year, with new opportunities open for the Bulls.

“Buffalo has been playing it’s best volleyball in it’s history,” said Huskies’ head coach Ray Gooden. “They’re a good sized team with some pretty physical attackers.”

Leading the Bulls is newly appointed head coach Todd Kress, who was the last head coach for the NIU volleyball team before current head coach Gooden stepped in. As a veteran of volleyball coaching, it should not be surprising that the team has done so well this season under his lead.

The following day, the Huskies will suit up once more and take on the Akron Zips. Akron (9-11, 1-5) comes into its match against NIU after five tough conference matches, all of which were lost to the opposition. The Zips had exceptionally close games for their last two matches, which each required a tie-breaking fifth set to be played.

Unlike Buffalo’s aggressive offense, it is Akron’s defense that sets the team apart.

“They try to win with a lot of speed,” Gooden said. “Their defense is very strong.”
With great offense coming at them from one side and great defense from the other, according to Gooden, the Huskies have their work cut out for them.

“This is our toughest road trip to date,” he said.

All comments are moderated before being published. We will not edit your comments, but we also will not approve those that are abusive, off-topic, attack another poster or contain information we know to be libelous or false.

During peak weekday viewing times, most comments will be reviewed within six hours. For more detailed information, click here.

After submitting your comment, check below for a confirmation message.

• Your name:
• Enter text from image:
  

• Your comment:

* 300-character count. HTML formatting will not display.