Producing an optimistic image toward Huskie athletics, Jane Albright, the NIU women’s basketball coach, and Huskie football boss Jerry Pettibone spoke to a large gathering at the weekly coaches luncheon Thursday.

Albright enthusiastically announced her team’s opening game on Nov. 18, against the National Team from Belgium.

The women’s basketball team, ranked No. 12 nationally in scoring last year, faces a very tough schedule this year. Not only does NIU face North Carolina State, Temple and Butler at the Sixth Annual Fastbreak Fest but it also competes against Old Dominion early in the season.

“We are playing a lot of quality teams this year,” Albright said.

The Huskies, who have four returning starters, are looking forward to a great season despite injuries. The team is cut down to nine players.

“Along with our returning starters,” Albright said, “we have a lot of new players that are exciting and will have an immediate impact on the team.”

Albright also spoke of her two new co-captains Gena Stubbs and Carol Owens. Last year Stubbs reached a milestone by surpassing the 1,000 career-points mark. Owens received All-North Star Conference recognition and was a one time recipient of the NSC Player of the Week.

“We will look for a lot of leadership in our co-captains this year,” Albright said.

Pettibone, whose squad lost a one point heartbreaker last Saturday, said the loss was quite an upset to him and his players.

“Ball State, who has an excellent team,” Pettibone said, “was one of the most emotional losses I have had as a coach, because I knew we had the better team.”

While Pettibone was not pleased with the loss, he did have praise for some of his team members. Pettibone recognized the accomplishments of three of his players. Kevin Cassidy was mentioned for the 18 tackles he compiled Saturday. Kurt Cassidy, Kevin’s twin brother and Cary Calliendo were also praised.

The Huskies now look to Saturday’s opponent, Western Illinois. The Leathernecks average 35 points a game while only allowing 16. NIU, however, leads the series with 18-14-1.