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Northern Star

Northern Illinois University’s student news organization since 1899

 

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The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

NIU senior Mikael Vollbach gets set to receive the serve during singles. Vollbach scored the Huskies’ second point in a tight match that went to a second set tiebreaker as he defeated University of Nebraska Omaha sophomore Ryoma Mishiro with scores of 6-4, 7-6 and 7-5. (Tim Dodge | Northern Star)

Vollbach earns MAC Scholar Athlete of the Week honors

By Kalin Schaefer, Sports Reporter | March 7, 2024

NIU men’s tennis senior Mikael Vollbach was named the MAC Scholar Athlete of the Week, the conference announced Wednesday.  MAC faculty athletics representatives consider athletic performance from the previous week and grade-point average when selecting...

Junior guard Laura Nickel (32) pushes through Miami University graduate student guard Jordan Tuff (1) while driving towards the paint. Nickel scored 11 points and grabbed 7 rebounds off the bench in a 56-46 win over the RedHawks. (Courtesy of Miami Athletics)

Women’s basketball clinches MAC Tournament berth with win over Miami

By Lucas Didier, Assistant Sports Editor | March 7, 2024

NIU women’s basketball (14-15, 7-10 MAC) punched its ticket to the MAC Tournament as late three-point shooting and strong bench play led a 56-46 win over the Miami University RedHawks (8-20, 5-12 MAC). A 15-0 run from the Huskies to end the third...

Then-senior linebacker Tyler Jackson (0) lines up behind then-redshirt sophomore George Gumbs Jr. and then-junior defensive tackle Cade Haberman in an NIU football home game against Ohio University on Oct. 14, 2023. NIU footballs 2024 schedule was released Tuesday. (Tim Dodge | Northern Star)

NIU finalizes 2024 football schedule

By Skyler Kisellus, Sports Reporter | March 6, 2024

DeKALB – The NIU football team is set to face a pair of Power Five opponents in the University of Notre Dame and North Carolina State University in its 2024 schedule announced by NIU and the Mid-American Conference Tuesday. NIU will play six games...

A graphic shows Sports Reporter Skyler Kisellus above the logos of 12 Illinois universities. Kisellus details how he would fare in a hypothetical fist fight with each of the 12 Illinois universities mascots. (Eddie Miller | Northern Star)

COLUMN: Rumbling with Illinois mascots

By Skyler Kisellus, Sports Reporter | March 6, 2024

If you’ve come here in search of rankings to base your early March Madness bracket picks on, keep looking. If you’ve come to find out how I, a wise-cracking and far-from-athletic sports reporter, would fare against the nicknames of Illinois’...

Sophomore forward Yanic Konan Niederhauser (14) and junior guard David Coit (11) double team Central Michigan University junior guard Anthony Pritchard in an NIU mens basketball home game on Tuesday. Konan Niederhauser and Coit combined for 39 points in the Huskies 69-63 defeat. (Tim Dodge | Northern Star)

Konan Niederhauser breaks out in Huskies’ loss to CMU

By Ethan Gonzales, Sports Editor | March 6, 2024

DeKALB – Central Michigan University’s (17-13, 11-6 MAC) balanced offensive attack proved to be too much for NIU men’s basketball (10-20, 4-13 MAC) to handle as the Huskies fell 69-63 Tuesday in their final home game of the 2023-2024 season. Sophomore...

A graphic shows junior guard David Coit as the Huskie of the Week. Coit scored a career-high 35 points against the University of Akron on Saturday. (Eddie Miller | Northern Star)

Coit snags fourth-career Huskie of the Week honor

By Northern Star Sports Staff | March 4, 2024

DeKALB – A career-high 35 points against the MAC-leading University of Akron Zips helped NIU junior guard David Coit earn his second Huskie of the Week honor of 2023-24.  Coit’s 35 points tied Bowling Green State University junior guard Marcus...

Junior guard David Coit (11) prepares to make a fake pass to a teammate in front of him before quickly sending the ball to a teammate behind him.

Coit named MAC Player of the Week

By Zachary Bertram, Senior Sports Reporter | March 4, 2024

DeKALB – NIU junior guard David Coit earned his first career MAC Player of the Week award for his historic week against the University of Toledo Rockets and the University of Akron Zips. Facing the top two teams in the MAC, the 5-foot-11-inch guard...

NIU junior gymnast Isabella Sissi competes on floor during the second rotation of a quad-meet Sunday inside the James T. Valvano Arena at William Neal Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, North Carolina. Sissi finished second in the all-around with a score of 39.050 as NIU finished third in the meet, behind North Carolina State University and Iowa State University, with a team score of 195.200. (Courtesy of NC State Athletics)

O’Shea vault title lands NIU third place in N.C.

By Skyler Kisellus, Sports Reporter | March 4, 2024

NIU sophomore gymnast Kiera O’Shea scored her third 9.900 on vault this season as she championed the event at Saturday’s road quad-meet. “I thought it was one of the best vaults that I’ve done this season,” O’Shea said. O’Shea’s...

NIU senior infielder Caitlyn Shumaker throws the ball during the Huskies’ 11-2 loss to Western Kentucky University in five innings Sunday at the WKU Softball Complex in Bowling Green, Kentucky. NIU’s defeat sent the Huskies home with a 1-3 record at the Hilltopper Spring Fling. (Courtesy of Wyatt Richardson)

Softball splits weekend finale in Western Kentucky

By Skyler Kisellus, Sports Reporter | March 3, 2024

NIU softball split its second and final day of action at the Hilltopper Spring Fling on Sunday to finish its third weekend out of 2024 with a 1-3 record. The Huskies (4-10) defeated the University of Dayton (7-5) before falling to Western Kentucky...

A graphic shows the dates for NIU Athletic events this coming week. Wrestling’s trip to Kent, Ohio for the MAC Championships highlights this week in Huskie sports. (Eddie Miller | Northern Star)

Wrestling heads to MAC Championships this week in Huskie sports

By Northern Star Sports Staff | March 3, 2024

NIU wrestling heads to Kent, Ohio, for the MAC Championships while men’s and women’s basketball conclude their 2023-2024 seasons this week in Huskie sports. WRESTLING Friday, March 8 at MAC Championships, TBD Kent, Ohio / Memorial Athletic...

Senior infielder Andre Demetral focuses on a throw during an NIU baseball game against Louisiana State University. Demetral recorded one hit in the Huskies 14-1 loss to the University of Cincinnati on Sunday. (Courtesy of Jonathan Mailhes)

Baseball bags ‘Boneyard Win’, drops 2 to Bearcats

By Zachary Bertram and Joseph Segreti | March 3, 2024

After falling to the University of Cincinnati Bearcats (6-5) 6-5 on a walk-off hit by pitch in Game 1, NIU baseball (3-9) bounced back for a 6-4 win behind the best performance of freshman catcher Cooper Cohn’s young career in Game 2.  Despite allowing...

Then-junior Mikael Vollbach stands ready to receive a serve during mens tennis match against the University of Illinois Chicago on Feb. 22, 2023. Vollbach won all three of his matches Saturday, including his doubles match with senior Cheng En Tsai and the dual-clinching singles match against University of Nebraska Omaha. (Courtesy of NIU Athletics)

Men’s tennis take two decisive victories

By Kalin Schaefer, Sports Reporter | March 3, 2024

Improving to 10-2 on the season, NIU men’s tennis defeated both Southern University (0-9) and the University of Nebraska Omaha (10-6) on Saturday.  Defeating Southern 7-0 with two doubles and four singles matches being played, only five Huskies...