"We all are happy to get a chance to play volleyball again in the fall and do it in front of fans," said NIU head coach Ray Gooden. "Cedar Falls and Northern Iowa always have a great environment, so it was nice for our team to start off our season with a good session against UNI. It was really good to have the opportunity to play against someone else. It was a great way for our team to know where we are at and how we can improve for our home opener next week."
After playing a conference only schedule last season, Saturday's exhibition was NIU's first chance to play against an opponent from outside the Mid-American Conference since traveling to Bradley on Sept. 21, 2019. Following Saturday's contest, Gooden feels positive about the ability of his team to get positive production from throughout the roster.
"I think we feel good about playing with many different combinations," said Gooden. "We have a lot of people with the ability to contribute on our team, we have lots of competition and people that can help our group find ways to be successful. When you have things like that, it helps our gym get that much better."
With four sets against Northern Iowa in the books, Gooden's Huskies will now turn their attention toward the regular season, which starts next weekend.
"Now we get a chance to settle into our season rhythm, which includes being student-athletes, going to class, balancing class and volleyball," said Gooden. "Now we get a chance to focus on a team at a time, but also get a chance to get better every single day, we get the opportunity to grow but we think that we are at a solid starting point."
NIU will open the regular season next weekend as it hosts the Huskie Invitational on Friday, Aug. 27 and Saturday, Aug. 28. NIU's opening match of the tournament will take place on Friday at 10 a.m. when it hosts Western Illinois. The Huskies face Cal State Bakersfield on Friday evening at 7 p.m. and Air Force on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.
Season tickets for the 2021 volleyball season are available now for just $35. The Huskie Family Four Pack is also available which consists of four season tickets for $95, coming out to $22.50 per ticket. Season tickets allow fans to attend all matches during the opening tournament weekend. Tickets will be mobile and season ticket members can manage their tickets through their MyHuskies account.
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August 22, 2021 at 06:58AM
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Huskies Conclude Preseason with Exhibition at Northern Iowa - Northern Illinois University Athletics
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