NIU volleyball coach Todd Kress talked to his Huskies about staying focused on the road.

The Huskies made the third-year coach proud this weekend, beating Marshall and Ohio to improve their road record to 8-4.

Saturday’s win at Marshall saw the Huskies produce one of their most balanced performances of the season. All 11 Huskies who dressed saw action in the team’s seventh-straight win.

Game 1 saw little resistance from the home team. NIU tallied a .417 hitting percentage compared to .096 by the Thundering Herd. The second game saw much of the same as the Huskies pounded the Thundering Herd, notching 20 kills for a .382 hitting percentage.

The finale proved to be a little more of a test, but the Huskies managed to escape with a 32-30 victory.

“I’m very pleased with the way we hung in there and I’m happy with our effort tonight,” Kress said. “During this seven-match win streak, it seems like each player is getting more and more confident. This is very key as we return home for a very tough stretch of games.”

Sophomore Amanda Newlin stepped in place of senior Carrie Blankenship, who was out with an ankle injury, and recorded her best statistical match of the season. Newlin posted an incredible .625 attack percentage en route to five kills on the night.

Freshman Tera Lobdell had a match-high 11 kills for the Huskies while notching a .444 attack percentage.

Fellow freshman Daren Poe continued her impressive rookie season leading NIU with 13 digs and four kills.

“Everyone contributed tonight and we played pretty well,” Kress said. “Marshall made a nice push late but we held them off. Once again we served well and got them out of system. It was a nice overall effort and we continued to do the things that have made us successful.”

On the first leg of the road trip, NIU dropped the opening game against Ohio before rebounding for three straight wins.

In the first game, the home team stormed out of the gates beating the Huskies 30-27. The Bobcats had 20 kills and a .375 hitting compared to 13 kills and a .281 percentage for the Huskies.

“We started out a little slow and they jumped out ahead of us,” assistant coach Dani Kress said. “We didn’t cave, though. In the past three weeks, during our winning streak we have battled back and won these types of matches.”

And battle back they did.

After the loss in the first game the Huskies used great balance to keep the Bobcats off guard. The match saw five Huskies notch double-digit kills, led by Tenisha Wilkins’ 19.

Setter Jenny Bowman had a match-best 58 assists to go along with a season-high seven kills.

NIU managed nine service aces while OU carded only four. The Huskies dug 73 balls and blocked eight attempts compared to 64 digs and six blocks for the Bobcats.

“It was a typical road battle in the MAC,” Dani Kress said. “After getting behind our defense got really good. We made plays and that is what really got us going. The whole team got the job done. It’s nice to get a win like this when you don’t play your best.”