Sororities at NIU hope to see all the dedication and hard work they’ve put in the last couple of months come to fruition this weekend at the annual women’s tugs tournament.

Tugs is tug of war with two teams battling with added regulations.

The teams will hit the rope at the back field of University Plaza Apartments, 900 Crane Drive, Friday and Saturday to see which house will be crowned 2017 women’s tugs champion.

The teams competing are Delta Zeta, the reigning 10-time champions, Delta Gamma, Alpha Sigma Alpha, Alpha Phi, Sigma Kappa and Sigma Sigma Sigma.

Tanya Welch, Delta Zeta captain, senior public health major

Delta Zeta is a team battling through injury, but it’s nothing unfamiliar for team captain Welch.

Welch dealt with a broken rib last year and is dealing with another one this year but is powering through it once again.

“I know there’s girls that are hurting on my rope,” Welch said. “I’ve heard [there are] girls that have been hurting in other sororities, so I tell my team, we’re all hurting, [and] we all have to tug through it, and it’s not just us — it’s everyone.”

Delta Zeta is going for its 11th straight Tugs championship, and the team is feeling the pressure to keep its legacy going. As a chapter, Delta Zeta wants to make their alumni proud, as many come back to attend the event.

“All the sororities are coming for us, and it’s a lot of pressure,” Welch said. “I always tell my team at the end of practice, ‘It’s hard to get to the top, but it’s even harder to stay there,’ so I just remind them that this is the legacy, and we have to work extra hard to stay at the top where we are.”

Liz Dill, Delta Gamma captain, senior rehabilitation and disability major

Dill, in her last year of tugging, said she’s looking forward to ending her tugs career successfully and strongly with her team and sisters one last time.

Dill said every time she gets on the rope, she experiences the greatest feeling in the world.

“For me, personally, I feel like there’s no better representation that I could have for my house,” Dill said. “There’s no better way to represent myself as a Delta Gamma and as a sorority, than on the Tugs team because there’s an immense amount of pride that comes with being able to win a match for your house, especially because it’s something that we work so hard toward.”

Sam Schrader, Alpha Sigma Alpha captain, senior sociology major

In 2014, Schrader’s freshman year, Alpha Sigma Alpha placed fourth and has placed third the past two years. This year the sorority wants to continue progressing and place first or second.

“More veterans keep returning; and we’re getting new girls coming in that really like it,” Schrader said. “So, I feel like since we’ve gotten better, it’s [been] a big part of our house, and it brings everyone together, and it makes everyone excited to join [Tugs].”

Tugs preparation and the event itself may include more physicality than one might think, with most teams being sore and at least two teams dealing with injuries, including Alpha Sigma Alpha.

Schrader said her team’s anchor broke her rib, but will power through the injury. The anchor, padded with tape at the end of the rope, is an important position in Tugs because they control the end of the rope. Schrader said there’s almost no way to tug without the anchor.

“Being anchor is such a big part of Tugs, and we didn’t have anybody else,” Schrader said. “So she knew that she was needed, and she wanted to do it, so she just powered through it, and I’m really proud of her.”

Mitzel Barraza, Alpha Phi captain, senior sociology major

Barraza is one of the senior Tugs captains that have been emotional throughout the week, as it’s her last year tugging. What she’s enjoyed about Tugs is the process that brings the Greek community together.

“You don’t really think about tugs as a sport, but it’s honestly the best and weirdest sport there is,” Barraza said. “I like how Tugs’ teams, captains and coaches come together, and we all bond through [the] two to three months that we are practicing, and it means a lot because you don’t usually see these people so many times every single day.”

Taylor Coblentz, Sigma Kappa captain, junior pre-occupational therapy major

This is Coblentz’s first year as Tugs captain for Sigma Kappa after tugging for the first time last year.

Coblentz said for Sigma Kappa, Tugs is a sisterhood within a sisterhood, and it involves the girls ready to go out and put in work to represent their house.

“It’s just such a cool thing to be able to do this,” Coblentz said. “It’s something that [isn’t done at many other Illinois] universities, so it’s something unique to Northern, and I think that’s why it’s so cool because no one else really understands it.”