Friday’s 3-1 women’s soccer loss to Illinois was the end for the seniors. They are a special group to assistant coach Joe McCauley.

Becca Bleyer, Sarah Dickinson, Megan Anderson, Katy Boll and Maria Flores came to NIU in 1998, the same year McCauley did. They are the only group he has spent four years with since his arrival.

“We’ve grown together throughout those four years and I’ve gotten very close with them and their families,” McCauley said after the game.

Twenty-four hours before the game, Dickinson (one of the four team captains) was on crutches with a swollen knee and it seemed as though she would miss her final collegiate game.

During that time she did everything from keeping it elevated to taking medicine. By game time she was OK to start for the Huskie defense, something she was excited about.

The Huskies (3-14-1) held the faster and more athletic Fighting Illini scoreless for 58 minutes before Illinois’ Laura Freeman gave them a 1-0 lead.

Less than two minutes later, NIU’s Katie Klaas tied the game with her fifth goal of the year.

In the next six minutes Illinois’ Tara Schuling and Tara Hurless scored giving the Illini a 3-1 lead.

“Today we came out and took it to them, coach Frank Horvat said. When you have such a result like last year (8-0 Illini), when you’re the team coming in you’re thinking this isn’t going to be much. I think we frustrated them.”

Bleyer, also a team captain, was happy with the way the Huskies played Friday.

“Today was a great way to end it,” Bleyer said. “It just feels great to play that well, especially to give [Illinois] a game they didn’t expect.”

Despite the loss of starters Bleyer, Dickinson, Boll, Anderson and Jane Mucci, the Huskies will have six starters returning.

They are sophomores Klaas, Maggie Nowicki, Anne Roman and freshmen Katie Kieffer, Kerry Walker and Jamie Figura.

“I think we’re going to be even better next year and we almost had it with [Illinois] this year,” Klaas said.