Payback was what NIU women’s soccer coach Frank Horvat expected, and it’s what his team dealt out.

The Huskies beat host Wisconsin-Green Bay 2-1 Friday in their season opener.

The last time these two teams faced off, the Huskies let a 2-1 lead fade away and eventually lost 3-2 in the last game of the 2003 season.

“I was extremely confident that wouldn’t happen again,” Horvat said. “We worked so hard during the preseason, and this team is stronger and tougher because of it. After working so hard, they all gutted it out and held on.”

Junior midfielder Angeline Impelido got the Huskies (1-0 overall) off to a good start for the season when she knocked in an unassisted 30 footer to put the Huskies up 1-0.

Impelido contributed again for the Huskies when she assisted Wisconsin native Audra Gordon for the second goal of the game. Gordon, a sophomore from Madison, gave the Huskies a 2-0 lead on a 3-yard chip in off Phoenix goaltender Brooke Wikgren.

“It wasn’t a beautiful win, but an ugly win counts just the same as a pretty one,” Horvat said.

In the second half, the Phoenix staged a mini-comeback, putting 15 shots on goal, compared to seven by the Huskies.

Wisconsin-Green Bay finally got on the board when sophomore Dawn Detrie put a goal by junior goalkeeper Carrie Dvorak in the 50th minute of the game.

Detrie, who had not played since 2002 because of knee surgery, scored the first college goal of her career against NIU.

“We controlled the game and played extremely well,” Horvat said. “We didn’t give up anything dangerous, and when we did, Carrie [Dvorak] saved it or they shot it wide.”

Dvorak saved seven shots for the Huskies, while her Phoenix counterpart, Wikgren, saved just two.

NIU will host its first home regular-season game at 5 p.m. today at Huskie Soccer Field against Western Illinois. WIU is tied for fifth place in the Mid-Continent Conference preseason poll.