The NIU swimming and diving teams have a tough task ahead of them this weekend.

First, the Huskie squads travel to Evanston Friday for a 6 p.m. co-ed triangular meet against Northwestern University and Wheaton College.

From there it’s on to Cedar Falls, Iowa, for a Saturday afternoon co-ed dual meet against the University of Northern Iowa at 1 p.m.

To make things that much tougher, two Huskies have gone down with injuries this week.

Freshman standout Janene Bytnar sprained her right knee during the week. She may see limited action tonight but not Saturday. The women’s squad will sorely miss her as they attempt to improve upon its 3-4 record.

Bytnar was Mid-Continent Conference Swimmer of the Week last week and set the school record in the 200-yard butterfly in Hawaii, posting a 2:09.88.

Picking up the slack for the women will be Kristen Scholz, Margaret Turner and Amy Inselberger.

Scholz, coincidentally, is the Mid-Continent Swimmer of the

Week for this week and Turner and Inselberger both recently qualified for the NCAA Zone C Diving Championships in March.

The men’s 2-5 ledger will have to be improved upon without sophomore sprint specialist Alex Attiah. Unfortunately, he’ll be out indefinitely with a broken foot.

Fresh off a weekend which saw him set a school record in the 200-yard backstroke with a 1:56.56, Hobe Scholz will lead the Huskie men. Jarod Schroeder, a two-time winner last weekend, will pace NIU in the 100 and 200-yard freestyle events.

Matt Mersman and Tony D’Amico will also contribute to the cause when they help the team with their diving skills. They will be joining their female counterparts in the Zone C Championships at Michigan.

“Northwestern has a lot of top-notch individuals,” said NIU head coach Jeanne Fleck. “They should push our top swimmers a little bit harder.”