The women’s soccer team is looking to bounce back from a disappointing road trip.

The Huskies (4-8-2, 2-3-1 MAC) will take on the defending MAC champions Miami RedHawks (6-6-2, 3-1-2 MAC) at 3 p.m. Friday at Miami.. The team will have another tough match against the Ball State Cardinals (9-4-1,4-2 MAC) at noon Sunday at Ball State. With only five games left in the season, the Huskies have to get some points in order to stay in the top eight of the conference.

The Miami RedHawks present a big challenge for the Huskies. Miami’s offense was potent early in the season, especially in non-conference play, when they averaged 2.3 goals a game. Recently, they’ve taken a downturn. The RedHawks have only scored five goals in their last seven games. Despite their current offensive struggles, they present a big challenge for the Huskies.

Head coach John Ross believes if the team is aggressive on both sides of the ball, a win is very possible.

“Right now they’re one of the better teams in the MAC, and we have to match their intensity,” Ross said. “We’re going to try and get after them defensively. If we do that as a team, that will give us an opportunity to win.”

Huskies have seen Miami’s players showing off last season’s trophies and medals on social media. NIU goalie Amy Carr believes it will give the team extra motivation.

“We’ve got to get something from this game,” Carr said.. “They lost their top striker [Jess Kodiak], so we’ve got to be ready for whoever steps up on their offense.”

Miami’s continued success this season has players looking forward to the game. Forward Kate Wirthlin expects the game to be a tough one.

“They’re a force to be reckoned with,” Wirthlin said. “They’re a team we have to bring our A game for.”

The Ball State Cardinals present a very similar challenge. Like Miami, the Cardinals get contributions from many players. Seven of the team’s 19 goals have come from off the bench. The ability to produce scorers from anywhere is a big reason why Ball State is having such a successful year. Combined with a defense that has seven shutouts, the Cardinals could be a bigger challenge than Miami.

“They’re having a really good year,” Ross said. “Their play is very similar to what we saw last year. It’ll be a good test for us.”

Carr agreed that Ball State will be a challenge, but the focus is on getting points.

“Every year they’ve given us a fight,” Carr said. “We’ve got to get a [good result] from this game.”