NIU women’s soccer coach Frank Horvat is relieved his team picked up its first win last Friday, 5-3 over Akron.

“It built up some confidence and relieved a lot of frustration from the other games,” Horvat said.

The Huskies will take that confidence into this weekend for two home games against Mid-American Conference rivals Bowling Green Friday and Toledo Sunday.

The Huskies (1-5-1 overall, 1-2 in MAC) defeated Bowling Green (3-2-2, 0-1) 4-2 in last year’s meeting. Megan Anderson, Tiffany Anderson, Katie Klaas and Jill Heikkila each had goals in that game.

“They’re an improved team (this year),” Horvat said. “The big thing is we just got to come out and play as a team.”

The Huskies are 3-1 lifetime against the Falcons.

Toledo (3-2-1, 2-1-1) defeated the Huskies 5-0 last year. It was the Rockets’ first win against the Huskies in school history. They are currently in second place in the conference.

“They are dangerous up top, and they do what they have to do to stay in games,” Horvat said.

Overall, the Huskies have beaten the Rockets three of four times. Horvat says the team needs to take advantage of its opportunities in both games.

“We’re not giving up a lot lately,” he said. “We’re not finishing our really good (scoring) chances.”

Thus far, the Huskies have played five road games and two home games. This weekend the Huskies won’t have to travel for the first time this season, and that pleases Horvat.

“Traveling is tough,” Horvat said. “It’s probably the toughest thing an athlete has to do outside managing their time. It’s good to be home and not have to be on a bus or on a plane or in hotel rooms. It’s a big advantage for us, we just need to be prepared to go out and take care of business.”