Energy should be high when the NIU men’s soccer team takes the pitch in its 2010 home opener.

The Huskies play host for the NIU Adidas/Magnuson Inn Invitational to Oregon State and former head coach Steve Simmons today at 5 p.m. and finish the weekend at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday against Cleveland State.

NIU (0-1-1) had trouble last weekend bringing the liveliness against No. 16 Portland and Washington as they were shutout in a tie and a loss.

“Our biggest thing is we just need to come out with energy in every game and to be honest that’s not even a soccer issue,” said NIU head coach Eric Luzzi. “It’s just a mental and excitement issue.”

Today’s match marks the first time Simmons returns to the NIU turf since his departure two years ago, but since their first meeting last season, a 2-0 Huskies’ victory, Luzzi doesn’t differentiate this from any other game.

“We went through this last year so it’s just another game against a very good team who’s well coached,” Luzzi said. “It was different last year; last year was weird. This year it’s the next game on the schedule and it’s going to be a tough game because they’re a good team.”

Simmons sees the match up differently, as he has not been back in DeKalb since leaving.

“There will be a strangeness to it, but when things get going it will be another competitive game,” Simmons said. “For us, we’re seeing our weekend as two more very tough tests for our young ball club.”

Oregon State (2-0-0) took down Missouri-Kansas City 2-0 and Wisconsin-Green Bay 2-1, both on the road last weekend. The Beavers will be looking for a repeat team effort as all four of their goals came from four different players.

“They might not have one guy they can go to, but I think they’re probably a harder team to play,” Luzzi said. “They may not have one guy that is going to be the best player we’ll see this season, like they had last year, but they have a team that works very hard, that is very organized and it’s going to be a very difficult team to play.”

Cleveland State (1-1-0), who was picked to finish in the middle of a tough Horizon League with the likes of Butler and Wisconsin-Green Bay, began its season with a 1-0 loss to St. Bonaventure and a 2-1 win over Niagara.

The Vikings biggest threats come from the boots of sophomore strikers Aaron Adkins and Admir Suljevic, who are the top scorers returning from last season.