The NIU women’s field hockey team will travel to SIU-Carbondale today to encounter its first match in a four-game weekend.

“Although Southern is 0-9, they are not the kind of team to overlook,” coach Laurie Bell said. “We’re used to a much faster game because of our field, but SIU has a grass field, which is not a very good surface.”

The Huskies, 2-2-1, will enter the weekend’s matches ranked 10th in their region, a ranking which Bell feels is somewhat premature.

“It’s great to be ranked,” Bell said, “but it’s an early indicator as to where we are since we’ve only played in five games.”

Following the match at SIU, the team will travel to St. Louis, where it will meet Southwest Missouri (9th in region) and St. Louis on Saturday. The Huskies will test their strengths against 6-1 Louisville on Sunday.

“I haven’t seen any of these teams play yet,” Bell said. “We’re hoping to come home with four wins, but I’m not sure what to expect.”

The Huskies will try to bounce back from a “disappointing loss” to Northwestern last weekend. NIU lost 2-1 to the nationally-ranked Wildcats, but it was the first time the Huskies scored against NU in seven years.