Spring Break will begin two days early this year for the NIU softball team.

The Huskies (3-5) will take on Tennessee Tech at noon today in their first game of the 24-team USF-Adidas Invitational in Clearwater, Fla.

NIU will play Villanova, Massachusetts, Jacksonville and Purdue in pool play. The top two teams in NIU’s pool go on to play for the tournament championship against the top two teams from the other three pools. The tournament playoffs begin March 12.

NIU coach Donna Martin said she is looking for the team to become more consistent on both sides of the ball as the break progresses.

“As a team we want to set a bar one day and improve upon it the next,” Martin said.

The Huskies will remain in Clearwater on March 13 to play in the USF mini tournament.

Martin said the mini tournament is more like the round-robin tournament NIU played in Carbondale this past weekend.

At 10 a.m. March 14, the Huskies play Fordham before a noon showdown with MAC foe Buffalo.

Canisius and South Florida will be NIU’s final opponents on March 15 to end the tournament.

Heading into the break, Martin said she believes the team’s strength is unity.

“We have a really close-knit group this year who play hard for the program and each other,” Martin said. “It’s hard to put my finger on our strengths right now, but we need to get a handle on what we have confidence in and what we need to work on.”

With seven of NIU’s 18 players being freshmen, Martin said the stretch of games will be a real mental challenge for the rookies.

NIU’s freshmen, however, have been leading the way offensively thus far.

First-year players Jenna Roberts and Bailey Ouellette are second and third on the team with .333 and .300 batting averages, respectively.

“Our returning players have taken a trip like this every year and we expect them to help lead the younger players through the road fatigue,” Martin said.