1995: The year when Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young won his first Super Bowl with the 49ers. The year O.J. Simpson captured the nation with his murder trial. The year when Michael Jordan returned to the Bulls after his baseball experiment.

It also happens to be the last year the NIU volleyball team opened the season with a loss.

No pressure.

With his team’s first game of the season at University of Illinois-Chicago tonight, NIU coach Ray Gooden is not to taking his opponent for granted.

Despite a 30-12, 30-24, 30-23 thrashing of the Flames last season at home, the fourth-year coach had some caution in his voice when discussing the upcoming match.

“They are a good team and we’re going to their place,” Gooden said. “We played them a few times this summer and they are hungry to beat us. I’ve talked to their coach and that’s been their goal ever since last season. They really, really want to beat us.”

The Huskies kickoff their season schedule with a pair of 7 p.m. matches tonight at UIC and Saturday versus Northern Iowa at Victor E. Court.

NIU’s second opponent of the weekend will be Northern Iowa, a perennial Missouri Valley Conference powerhouse that returns only three starters. The last time Northern Iowa visited DeKalb, the then No. 6-ranked Panthers narrowly edged the Huskies 26-30, 30-26, 27-30, 26-30.

“It will be the first time we will be tested as a team,” said senior setter Marie Zidek. “People are in different roles this year. It will be very competitive.”

With five new freshmen and a revamped starting lineup, junior middle blocker Kate McCullagh said the first couple matches will show the Huskies where they are at as a team.

“Yes, it definitely feels like starting over,” McCullagh said. “It’s a lot of teaching and getting everyone on the same page.”

The impact of the freshmen on the team is, “still an unknown at this point,” Gooden added. “All three starters will have a chance to make significant contributions.”

The three freshmen starters for NIU will be middle blocker Joelle Beisel, setter Jenny Dziubla and outside hitter Irene Johnson. McCullagh will anchor the middle blocker position as well with sophomore Laura Baetzel probably starting as the second outside hitter. Senior setter Marie Zidek and junior libero Gina Guide will contribute passing and defense duties.

Junior outside hitter Corinne Walsh, a starter for most of last season, is out of the lineup with an upper torso injury.

After losing 10 of its first 14 games to start last year, Zidek thinks the team needs to concentrate on keeping a steady mindset balanced with team aggressiveness.

“The defense needs to have a good shutdown mentality out there,” Zidek said. “We can’t just play to avoid a losing streak. We need to just play our butts off and just go in with a blind confidence.”