After winning its first road match of the season, NIU women’s volleyball will travel to Omaha, Neb. Friday to participate in the Creighton Invitational.

The Huskies will face off against Creighton (1-3) Friday and will wrap up their weekend with two matches Saturday against familiar opponents.

The Bluejays have played tough competition early on this season. Creighton is coming off of a five-set loss on Tuesday to Kansas State.

The Bluejays were ranked 32nd in this season’s NCAA Volleyball RPI poll.

NIU’s first opponent Saturday will be Marquette (2-2), who won in four sets last season while out-hitting the Huskies with a .280 hitting percentage and 12 blocks.

NIU was led by middle blocker Sarah Angelos’ career-high 15 kills and .636 hitting percentage. Angelos was the only Huskie with 20 or more attempts to hit over .200. Despite Angelos’ success, NIU could only muster five blocks and a .195 hitting percentage.

In that match, the Golden Eagles grabbed the first set 25-23, but the Huskies rallied in an extended second set, winning 30-28 to even up the match. Marquette held on to leads in the third and fourth set to end the match with 25-20 and 27-25 outcomes.

The loss was the regular season finale for both teams, with NIU finishing with a 27-8 record and Marquette boasting a 23-9 finish.

Knowing they have a tough slate this weekend, the Huskies are looking forward to hitting the road.

“I’m looking forward to having more matches on the road,” said NIU head coach Ray Gooden. “We need more matches against tough teams.”

The second opponent NIU will play Saturday is South Dakota (1-2). The Huskies defeated South Dakota in last year’s NIU Invitational in straight sets.

The Coyotes struggled in their last encounter with NIU. They talied a .144 hit percentage with 23 digs, while NIU recorded a .366 hitting percentage with 41 digs. NIU won that match 25-11, 25-17, 25-18.

With familiar foes scheduled for the weekend, the Huskies said they’re ready and excited to get the action under way.