The NIU women’s volleyball team started out hot last night against Illinois-Chicago, but the Flames extinguished the Huskies’ fire and came out on top in four games by scores of 15-12, 10-15, 14-16 and 8-15.

The North Star Conference opening loss dropped the Huskies’ record to 9-8, while the Flames improved their season mark to 12-11.

While NIU head coach Pete Waite was not happy about starting the conference season with a loss, he remained optimistic in his outlook.

“This was one of those games that if we eliminate the errors, we have a chance to win,” Waite said. “I don’t think we’re out of the ballpark. We just need to improve in some areas.”

One of the areas Waite was quick to point out was ball handling.

“Overall, we lacked concentration and basic ball handling and it made a difference in the match,” Waite said. “We just need to be a lot more disciplined in our ball handling.”

Trailing 11-1 in the third game, the Huskies were able to hang tough and stage a tremendous comeback thanks to junior outside hitter Laura Petersen. Petersen came off the bench and sparked the Huskies to a 14-13 lead late in the game. But a net serve ended the Huskie streak, and the Flames went on to finish the match.

“Laura had a real nice match,” Waite said. “She led the team in digs and just did a super job.”

Petersen finished the match with 11 digs, eight kills and a .313 hitting percentage.

Cathy Holmes continued to lead the struggling Huskies. The senior co-captain had 22 kills and one error in 33 attempts for a phenomenal .636 hitting percentage. Holmes also led the team in blocks with four assists and four solos.

The Huskies will play their first home match in almost a month when the Akron Lady Zips come to Chick Evans Field House Friday at 7:30 p.m. On Saturday, the Huskies host Cleveland State at 2 p.m.