Before spring break comes and takes us away from the daily grind of school, the NIU women’s gymnastics team has a showdown against Kent State on Senior Day at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Convocation Center.

The Huskies (6-8, 1-2 MAC) will face a tough test as the Golden Flashes have twice scored over 196 this season and are on top of the MAC with a 2-1 conference record.

“They’re going to be a tough team, but we’re better this season,” senior Kristie Woodin said. “It is going to be a tough meet, but I think we will give them a run for their money.”

Sunday will be a somber day for the three seniors: Laura Hale, Anna Gardina and Woodin.

Two other seniors, Tiffany Nolen and Dannielle Dacey, still have one year of eligibility left as each missed a year with a foot injury.

Gardina and Hale will compete in the All-Around, and Woodin has been the team leader on the vault and is making a strong bid to go to Regionals for the vault, as is Gardina in the All-Around.

“I’m glad we’re improving my senior year because we haven’t done so well previously,” Woodin said. “I’m just glad to be a part of the team when we are finally peaking, but it’s sad to leave.”

Despite being under .500 on the season, NIU is enjoying one of it’s best seasons in the last three years. With still a month to go, the Huskies are one win away of equalling their win total of the last two years combined.

While experience has helped the Huskies get to where they are, coach Mark Sontag listed a number of other supporting factors.

“Having a new coaching staff allows us to have more people spotting, which is huge for us,” he said. “We’ve also been relatively healthy which is half the battle in college gymnastics and have had good recruiting classes.”

With four consecutive meets above 192 the Huskies have looked impressive but have had trouble finding the win column.

“Three years ago we would’ve sold our souls for a 192,” Sontag said. “But, now we get them on the road with a few misses. To be very competitive and loose is not a good day for us anymore. Those moral victories are over with the team we have now.”