Heading into her fourth year as a member of the NIU field hockey team, 21-year-old Mary Fike looks to help the Huskies to a successful season. As a center-halfback, Fike's position is a demanding one, involving a lot of running and the responsibility...

After finishing seventh in the country last spring, the NIU women's softball team has a big task ahead of them this year. With 14 of last year's 18 players returning, the prospects look good. Their one-month fall season will definitely help fill in the...

NIU athletics took a big step out of the Dark Ages this year with the hiring of Huskie almnus Jim Zielinski as the school's first strength coach. Actually, "Zee's" status is that of an acting coach, but the 5-foot-11 (he claims 6-foot even), 242-pound...

Just when you thought the NIU softball team had gotten all the recognition it could get, more awards began piling up on the Huskies' doormat. Headlining the honorees is centerfielder Jill Justin, who received a nomination for the 1988 Honda-Broderick...

There are no plans to construct a Huskiedome at NIU, but softball coach Dee Abrahamson might petition for one soon. With last Tuesday's doubleheader home opener having been canceled due to inclement weather, the 11-5 Huskie softball squad has been scrambling...

Friday afternoon started typically, except this time the clan from The Northern Star was getting set for softball instead of the weekly football game. We had nine people at the field behind Gabel Hall, enough to have batting and fielding practice, but...

While the women's softball team has every intention of playing its home opener today, Mother Nature may have other plans. The Huskies are scheduled for a 1 p.m. doubleheader against the Iowa Hawkeyes, but at press time play looked questionable because...

It looks like the NIU softball team is a fair-weather bunch. Coach Dee Abrahamson's squad dropped three straight decisions in the chilly Carbondale air over the weekend before rallying for a 3-1 win over Western Illinois Saturday afternoon. The Huskies'...

So maybe southern Illinois isn't southern Florida. The NIU softball team won't notice the difference if they can have as much success this weekend in Carbondale as they did in Tallahassee over Spring Break. The Huskies, 10-2 after a second-place finish...

To the 1988 NIU softball team, the future looks so bright, they've got to wear shades. At least, that's the song the Huskies hope to be singing this season. The Huskie squad began its 1988 campaign on the road in Florida and built a solid foundation to...

Listen closely and you can hear the bats cracking and the balls whizzing. Yes, it is spring time and with spring comes softball season. While the temperature outside has not yet reached spectacular heights, the 1988 NIU softball team is beginning to heat...

College athletes must perform in their sport and in the classroom, but sometimes they have the added pressure of battling the "dumb jock" stereotype in the eyes of some faculty. Elliot Lessen, an associate professor of Learning, Development and Special...