It’s showtime.

The NIU women’s basketball team will make its 1988-‘89 debut Friday at 7 p.m. in the Chick Evans Field House. Head coach Jane Albright and her team will square up against Solna Sports Club, the Swedish National Team, in an exhibition game.

The Huskies were originally scheduled to play the Belgium National Team. However, because the Belgium team is competing for the European Cup, it is not able to visit DeKalb. As far as Albright is concerned, any game besides an intrasquad game is a welcome relief.

“We’re just excited to be playing somebody besides ourselves,” said Albright, who is entering her fifth year as the Huskie boss. “It’s that time of the year when you need to play against somebody with a different color uniform. The Swedish team is a great team, and we want an opportunity to play a team like that.”

The Swedish squad handed Illinois State a loss Tuesday (Nov. 15), giving NIU a chance to scout the Swedes.

“They’re (Sweden) a team we can match up against, and hopefully we’ll be able to do a lot of things successfully,” Albright said. “In a game like this, you want to win. But the thing about it is you want to have a chance to look and see if your ready for the Old Dominion game.”

NIU’s official season opener will be an away game against Old Dominion on Nov. 26th.

A bright spot for the NIU-Swede game will be the appearance of junior Lisa Foss on the court. Foss has been given the green light to start at guard after undergoing a strenuous rehabilitation program since having knee surgery over the summer. Foss’ progress has been a day-by-day situation, and come game time, the coaches will keep a watchful eye on the Huskies 1987-‘88 Most Valuable Player.

Another player the coaches have to keep an eye on is 6-foot-2 Tammy Hinchee. The Huskie forward is nursing a sprained wrist but should be on the court much of the game. Sophmore Denise Dove had a neck problem a couple of weeks ago. However, Dove is now 100 percent and ready to go.

The tentative lineup for Friday’s game will have Dove and Foss at the guard positions, Gena Stubbs and Hinchee as the forwards, and Carol Owens at center.