Softball is on pace to make a run at its first 40-win season since 1993, and this season stands as one of the most impressive campaigns the team has had in quite some time.

The Huskies (32-13, 12-5 MAC) proved to be a team on the rise in 2015, ending the year at 28-25 but showing glimpses of brilliance at various points in the season. They went on winning streaks of at least three games three times and were one of the most exciting teams in the MAC, but had their season cut short after disappointing performances in the MAC Tournament against Miami University and the University of Akron.

Perhaps one of the brightest moments of last season was the performance of junior first baseman Kayti Grable, who set a then-record for most home runs in a season at NIU with 15. In the same season, sophomore Alaynie Woollard hopped into the top three of the very same list, hitting 10 home runs of her own.

Rather than letting an unfortunate end to last season discourage them, the Huskies have returned in 2016 with a vengeance, solidifying themselves as the top team in the conference. They came two games short of setting an NIU record for consecutive games won — their streak ended at 14 — the record is 16, set in 1988.

Grable’s single season home run record was broken this year by senior catcher Emily Naegele, who is up to 16 on the year and has already taken home multiple weekly MAC awards.

Freshman Alex Frenz has led the way on the pitching side, going 14-4 with a 2.50 ERA and 103 strikeouts in 134.2 innings of work. She’s followed by sophomore pitcher Tara Thacker, who is up to 9-6 on the year with a 3.33 ERA.

“Those two are a really nice one-two punch right now,” said NIU head coach Christina Sutcliffe, according to an NIU Athletics news release. “Tara’s been doing an amazing job coming in in late innings under a lot of pressure and being able to get us out of the innings. Her composure has been phenomenal and she’s done a really nice job.”

What’s most exciting about the Huskies’ season is that it doesn’t look like they’ve played their best softball yet. After a recent skid where the team lost three out of five games, it has picked its play back up again, winning five consecutive games and seven of its last nine.

Although it would be considered a disappointing season if the team isn’t able to win the MAC Tournament, the season will stand out as one of the brightest NIU has had in quite some time. Since the team’s last 30 win season in 1999, it has only finished with a winning record twice.

NIU has improved steadily since the 2013 arrival of Sutcliffe, finishing with at least 26 wins in every season since she took over. Sutcliffe seems to have the team headed in a positive direction going forward, and it’ll be interesting to see what she can do with the team over the next few years.

She’s done a great job of propelling the Huskies into one of the top programs at NIU and has a chance to win the school’s first MAC Coach of the Year since 2000.