The Winter Break proved unkind to the NIU women’s basketball team.

Coach Carol Hammerle’s team finished up final exams week at 3-3, but stumbled to a 2-5 record since the break.

The Huskies now are 5-8 and 1-1 in the MAC.

Dayton 78, NIU 67

The Huskies dropped their first game of the break on the road at Dayton.

The Flyers used a 13-6 run to start the second half and never looked back while hitting 9-19 attempts from three-point range.

Lindsay Secrest scored a season high 19 points off the bench for the Huskies.

“It’s a Catch-22 for us right now,” Hammerle said. “When we don’t score like we want to, it translates to problems on the offensive end of the court. Dayton is a good ball club, but we have yet to go on the road and beat a good team.”

DePaul 79, NIU 65

DePaul got a game-high 24 points from Ashley Luke as the Blue Demons gave the Huskies their fifth straight road loss this season.

Kristan Knake added 17 points for the Huskies.

DePaul extended its lead to 66-46 at the 8:30 mark of the second half before the Huskies went on a 17-2 run to pull within five points. NIU’s offense then stalled as it managed only two free throws the rest of the way.

The Huskies shot a season-high 50 percent from the floor but were plagued by 22 turnovers.

“We aren’t playing well on the road,” Hammerle said. “We seem to battle ourselves more than our opponents.”

NIU 62, Bradley 59

The Huskies snapped a two-game losing streak by overcoming a game-high 27 points from Sara Bailey.

Jennifer Youngblood converted a three-point play to set the final margin with 6.2 seconds left. Youngblood added 10 rebounds along with 18 points for her 21st career double-double.

“Youngblood is a tough kid to defend in the post,” Bradley coach Paula Buscher said.

Despite shooting 0-11 from three point range, the Huskies still were able to pick up their fourth win by allowing only one Bradley player to reach double figures.

Kansas State 63, NIU 58

Kendra Wecker and Nicole Ohlde accounted for 25 of the Wildcats 63 points as fourth-ranked Kansas State handed the Huskies their first home loss of the season.

The win was the sixth in a row for the Wildcats and moved them to 11-1 overall. The Huskies dropped to 4-6.

“Even when you watch (Kansas State) on film, the five of them are like a machine,” Hammerle said. “They are a very good team, and as far as I’m concerned, on another level.”

Northern Iowa 67, NIU 52

The Huskies shot just 29 percent from the field and allowed 43 second half points while dropping their second straight game.

Jennifer Youngblood got her third consecutive double-double by tallying 14 points and 10 rebounds.

NIU trailed by only one point at the half but the Panthers went on an 11-2 run to start the second half and never looked back. The Huskies made only three of its first 19 shots in the second half.

“We don’t respond well when things don’t go our way,” Hammerle said. “We get frustrated, quit playing our system, panic, and gamble because we are frustrated.”

Ball State 74, NIU 71

Tamara Bowie scored 20 of her game-high 23 points in the first half as the Cardinals handed the Huskies their third straight loss.

Bowie, a two-time First Team All-MAC selection, also grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.

For the Huskies, freshmen Joi Scott scored a team- and career-high 17 points.

“This is the kind of performance we know she’s capable of,” Hammerle said.

NIU 78, Bowling Green 58

The Huskies ended a three game losing streak and evened their MAC record at 1-1 with a 20-point win over BGSU.

“We really needed this game for our psyche,” Hammerle said. “We did good things on both sides of the floor and just played an outstanding game.”

The win ended the Falcons five game winning streak.