NIU’s softball team continued its strong MAC play on the road this weekend at Buffalo and Kent State.

The Huskies (16-17 overall, 6-2 MAC) went 3-1, sweeping Buffalo in a doubleheader on Friday and splitting two games with Kent State, winning on Saturday and losing on Sunday.

Freshman Stephanie Tofft also continued her school-record hitting streak from 20 to 24 games, as she recorded at least one hit in each game. On the weekend, Tofft went 7-for-19 at the plate.

The key for the Huskies this weekend was their strong offensive play. In their four games, they scored a total of 43 runs on 53 hits.

“We really hit the ball great all weekend,” said head coach Lindsay Chouinard. “We have been very aggressive at the plate, and we have taken advantage of our opportunities. This is a very dynamic offensive team.”

NIU’s first game against Buffalo (9-23 overall, 4-4 MAC) was a wild one that went back and forth. The Huskies took an early 5-0 lead, scoring two runs in the second while adding three more in the third.

Buffalo tied the game 5-5 in the sixth, and both teams scored two runs in the seventh inning, sending them to extra innings tied 7-7.

The Huskies scored first in the 10th inning on a double from sophomore Jennifer Barnett that drove in two runs that made the score 9-7. Buffalo came right back with two more runs, tying the score at 9-9, and they moved on to the 11th inning.

NIU scored again in the 13th inning on an RBI single from sophomore Alexandra Wulbecker that drove in Tofft. That gave them a 10-9 lead and junior Morgan Bittner shut out Buffalo in the 13th inning, and the Huskies won the game 10-9.

The second game was completely one-sided for NIU, as they took care of Buffalo, shutting them out 7-0 in seven innings.

NIU took on the MAC East leaders Kent State (16-19 overall, 6-2 MAC) on Saturday and Sunday.

The Huskies put on a show offensively, scoring 19 runs; one run short of the school record, while recording 15 hits. NIU won the game 19-12.

NIU’s key performers were junior lead-off hitter Dani Parrish and sophomore clean-up hitter Adriana Sanchez. Parrish went 3-4 with three RBIs, and Sanchez went 3-6 with three RBIs.

In Sunday’s game against Kent State, the Huskies were in control the whole game, until the final inning.

NIU was up 7-3 going into the bottom of the seventh. Kent State tagged the Huskies for five runs in the bottom of the seventh, and won the game on a bases clearing double by Jessica Blanton.

“We just didn’t finish the game,” Chouinard said. “Our pitching and defense did not make the plays they need to make, and we let one get away from us.”

Despite the loss, Chouinard was pleased with the way the team performed over the weekend against MAC competition.

“Going 3-1 in MAC play is a great weekend for us,” Chouinard said. “If we win three games every weekend, we will have a good year.”