Neither men’s hockey team fared well on the road, and men’s rugby will have a tougher time making the playoffs after its result against Bowling Green.

Men’s Hockey

The Div. II hockey team was swept after flying down south to play Florida Gulf Coast University (6-0).

The Huskies lost both games 9-1.

“It was definitely a tough weekend on the scoreboard,” said head coach Chuck Rinaldo. “Credit to Florida Gulf Coast, they are by far the best team we have played thus far. I would not be surprised if they are a team that chases the national championship this year.”

Team captain Nick Remley felt NIU failed to play a complete game all weekend.

“Clearly we have some work to do,” Remley said. “Out of the six periods we played, we only played two good periods. If we strung together six good periods we would have had a better chance. Overall they just outworked us, and not only that, they worked smarter than us and worked together better.”

While the Huskies were swept, NIU (5-2-3) did have something good come out of the games.

“We had a good start,” Rinaldo said. “A good first period in both games, and that’s a big positive. In previous weekends and previous series we have had some trouble getting off to a quick start and trouble establishing our game in the first period. We recognized that sense of urgency and were able to establish ourselves quickly.”

The Div. III team’s slow start to the season continued against Purdue University (3-3).

The Huskies (0-8) fell to the Boilermakers 11-3 on Friday. Saturday, NIU lost in overtime 4-3.

“The second game we played really well,” said team captain JC Weems. “We were in the lead for all but the last three minutes of the game. We really should have won that one, but sometimes teams will be able to steal some from us. We just have to take it upon us to pick ourselves up and play a complete game next week.”

With a switch in the coaching staff resulting in some new schemes and lines, NIU (0-8) is starting to come together.

“Our rookies are starting to understand a little bit better about what is going on,” Weems said. “It’s nice that the players trust the coaching. We are starting to become more and more confident. We have the skill and the ability that if we start believing in ourselves that we can play good hockey, we will be able to play with anyone.”

Men’s Rugby

In a game that had playoff implications, the men’s rugby team fell 73-17 to Bowling Green State University.

“We have not seen a team like Bowling Green all season,” said rugby president Pat Caulfield. “They have been the top of the MAC since it started. They were much bigger and faster-paced than the teams we have played. Our team just had trouble adapting to that and adjusting. We never really found our aggression the whole game.”

While the Huskies (2-3) lost a big game, they are still in the hunt for the playoffs.

“This doesn’t kick us out completely,” Caulfield said. “We will need a little bit of help from other teams losing if we want a shot at it.”

While it would have been easy for NIU to give up in such a lopsided game, it never did.

“We were still scoring midway through the second half,” Caulfield said. “I like that our guys never gave up even though the score was bad. We kept trying our best to finish the game out.”