When it comes to streaks, it is usually the positive ones that people remember rather than the long losing streaks.

The NIU volleyball team is hoping that they can forget about the current skid they are on after dropping three matches at the University of Northern Iowa Invitational in Cedar Falls, Iowa this weekend.

The three losses pushed the Huskies’ current losing streak to five, with the last four coming on the road.

The competition was fierce as NIU went up against strong programs in UNI, Marquette, and Clemson – the 19th ranked team in preseason polls.

The Huskies started the weekend with a loss to UNI in straight sets, 19-25, 26-28, 10-25.

The Panthers brought a balanced attack on their home court, with three players tallying double-digit kills. UNI also out-hit the Huskies by over .200 points with a hitting percentage of .364, compared with NIU’s .148.

“We knew going into it that we were going to have to play a high level of volleyball,” said NIU head coach Ray Gooden.

High level-play is exactly what NIU would need in the Saturday morning match against the Clemson Tigers. The Huskies couldn’t seem to figure out the Tigers’ defense, as Clemson totalled nine blocks in a sweep of NIU, 25-17, 25-19, 25-10.

“All three teams are physically a little bit bigger than we were, so they were able to score points with their blocks,” Gooden said. “We try to do a lot of our work with our ball control and our transition, so that’s why they might have been able to out-block us in those matches.”

NIU’s attack on the Tigers was paced by junior Cassie Yates, who tallied eight kills and a .500 hitting percentage.

“She’s trying to get herself in a situation where she can make her contributions as great as possible, and I think she’s improving each and every match,” Gooden said. “We’re looking for her to continue that level of efficiency for us.”

NIU closed out the weekend against Marquette with a hard-fought loss as the Golden Eagles took three of four sets, 30-28, 25-21, 22-25, and 25-23.

Leading NIU against the Eagles was junior Meagan Schoenrock, who tallied 23 kills.

“She’s trying to expand her game as much as she can. I know she sets really high goals for herself, along with her team goals,” said Gooden of Schoenrock, who was selected to the All-Tournament team after totaling 51 kills over the three matches.