DeKALB | The women’s volleyball team begins Mid-American Conference play 7 p.m. Thursday on Victor E. Court as they host Western Michigan University.

They begin conference play at 8-4 on the season, their most wins in non-conference play since 2012.

NIU will play two matches over the weekend with the second beginning at 7 p.m. Saturday against Bowling Green State University at Victor E. Court.

The Huskies will look to build on their effective season last year when they went 14-2 in MAC play.

The team is coming in hot after a successful weekend in Washington, D.C., going 3-0 against University of Tennessee, George Washington University and James Madison University.

Prior to those matches, the Huskies endured some competitive play in Hawaii, but lost every match.

Although they were unable to win, the team got the chance to play against some amazing teams and improve overall.

The start to the Huskies’ season has been superb, starting with the Huskie Invitational and the North Dakota State University Classic.

The Huskies fell to University of Ohio in the Mid-American Conference Tournament Championship in straight sets ­— 25-17, 25-11, 25-19. NIU is 2-5 in the MAC Championship game all-time. The last time the program won the MAC Championship was in 2001.

The Huskies are ready to get back into the MAC and begin play. With strong players such as sophomore middle blocker Meg Wolowicz, senior middle blocker Jenna Radtke, senior outside hitter Mary Grace Kelly and Lauren Zielinski, redshirt senior middle blocker, dominating with their numbers, the team has thrilling conference play ahead of them.

Admittance is free to the public and the matches will air on ESPN3.