It’s not the best time for the NIU women’s softball team to face the top team in the MAC West.

The Huskies have lost eight of their last nine games and scored only eight runs during that span.

At 2 p.m. today at Mary Bell Field, the Huskies will kick off a three-game series with Central Michigan and try to solve their offensive woes.

The Chippewas (22-12 overall, 12-4 MAC) are second in the MAC in team batting average and fourth in team ERA.

Freshman infielder Amy Hudson leads the attack with a .379 batting average and 19 RBIs.

“We want to go out and put the pressure on them right away,” NIU coach Donna Martin said. “We’re not in a position to sit back. We need to force them into situations that they’re not comfortable with.”

Despite the lack of run support, the Huskies’ (20-23, 5-9) pitching staff has kept them in games.

Before its 11-2 loss Wednesday at Illinois State, the Huskies starting pitching allowed more than one earned run only twice in nine games.

The Huskies have played one game in nine days and struggled to find a rhythm, Martin said.

“Obviously it’s been hard,” she added. “Apparently it’s been harder on our pitchers than our offense. You want to keep playing every two to three days to keep your timing and rhythm. But it was good to play ISU heading into this weekend’s conference game.”

Sophomore infielder Ellen Stoddard leads the Huskies with a .333 batting average to go with 19 RBIs.

The Huskies have five MAC games remaining to fight for position in the MAC tournament. They have the second best overall record in the MAC West but are fifth in the conference standings.