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...

Top-caliber athletes dot the lineups of several NIU teams. Here are just a few to look for this season. Cathy Holmes is a strong catalyst for the NIU volleyball team. The senior helped lead her squad last season to a 19-16 overall finish and a second-place...

NIU wrestling coach Ed Vatch is excited about the two recruits he signed for the upcoming season: Thomas Curtis (T.C.) Dantzler from Thornwood and Jim Kossakowski from Elgin-Larkin. Dantzler is expected to wrestle for the Huskies at either 142 pounds...

Covering the men's wrestling team this year was quite an experience. Not only were the players and coaches helpful in giving interviews, but it was great to listen to head coach Ed Vatch's colorful quotes during the course of the season. For example,...

The NIU wrestling team finished the 1987-88 season with an overall 5-14-1 dual-meet record. The Huskies' season record does not exemplify the quality of wrestling displayed by coach Ed Vatch's young squad. Vatch will see most of his top grapplers in the...

Huskie wrestler, Anton Kossakowski at 177 pounds, is gearing up for the NCAA National Tournament at Ames, Iowa, Thursday, March 17. The Huskie grappler has been drilling heavily the last couple of days instead of going through live drills due to a swollen...

The 4-12-1 NIU wrestling team has a huge task to accomplish this weekend. The Huskies travel to Lincoln, Neb., on Saturday for a match with Nebraska at 5 p.m. and then tangle with 13th-ranked Oklahoma at 7 p.m. It's a big mission for the Huskies to go...

The NIU wrestling team travels to Milwaukee, Wis., tonight for a 6 p.m. match with Marquette and Wisconsin-Parkside. Huskie head coach Ed Vatch worked his team hard in practice this week in preparation for tonight's match. Vatch is trying to keep his...

NIU grapplers (2-12-1) lost 22-12 Saturday to ninth-ranked Ohio State (13-4) at the Chick Evans Field House. The Huskies' 190-pounder, Tom Hoy, looked very impressive in his match with OSU's Brian Reid. Reid (2-1-0) was brutalized by an aggressive Hoy...

The Huskie wrestling team will play host to the Buckeyes of Ohio State on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Chick Evans Field House. The match will be a reunion of sorts for Huskie coach Ed Vatch. Ohio State coach Russ Helickson was Vatch's coach at Wisconsin during...

The NIU wrestling team lost to Purdue 32-12 at West Lafayette, Ind., on Saturday and came back home Sunday night to lose a hard-fought match 24-20 at Chick Evans Field House. Huskie high points at Purdue had to be the play of Tino Gonzalez, Tim Cocco,...

The NIU wrestling team will travel to West Lafayette, Ind., Saturday to face the Purdue Boilermakers at 11:30 a.m. The Huskies will then face Northwestern Sunday at the Chick Evans Field House for a 7:30 p.m. match. In honor of World Hunger Day, a one-can...