The playoff hopes of the NIU women’s soccer team were shot down this weekend.

A 2-1 loss to Bowling Green on Friday and a 2-0 loss to Toledo on Sunday officially shut the door on the Huskies first MAC championships appearance since 1999.

If the Huskies, whose conference season is now over, won both of their games this weekend, a playoff spot would have been guaranteed. Or, if they had won one, they would have needed help from other teams to get a spot.

The Huskies (6-6-5 overall, 3-4-5 MAC) had never lost a game at Bowling Green (6-10-2, 4-5-2), but they found themselves in trouble early in Friday’s match.

In the 19th minute, senior midfielder Beth Rieman scored her first goal of the season to give Bowling Green the 1-0 lead they would take into halftime.

NIU senior defenseman Jamie Figura did her best to keep hopes of her first career postseason alive. Figura scored in the 59th minute off an Alexis Terry pass to tie the game at one apiece.

The tie did not last, as Bowling Green went on to score the game-winner at the 74-minute mark.

“We came out and struggled to play our game in the first half,” NIU coach Frank Horvat said. “We played a lot better in the second half and just missed a few opportunities.”

With all playoff hopes on the line, the Huskies made the trip to Toledo (7-7-3, 4-5-2) for their final conference game of the season.

The Huskies once again fell behind early just eight minutes into the game when Kelly Langenbeck scored her sixth goal of the season to put the Rockets up 1-0.

After 63 scoreless minutes, Toledo added an insurance goal and pushed its lead to 2-0.

“I’m so proud of this team and where we’ve come to this season,” Horvat said. “We’ve still got one game left, but looking last year to this year, we are definitely headed in the right direction.”

Toledo will play Bowling Green Oct. 28, and the winner will take the final spot in the MAC tournament. If the teams tie, Buffalo will be the final qualifier.

NIU will finish its season at Wisconsin Saturday.