DEKALB, Ill. – After traveling to Northern Iowa on Tuesday, the Northern Illinois University volleyball team will return to the State of Iowa for a trio of matches this weekend as the Huskies compete in the Iowa Invitational in Iowa City. NIU will square off with the host Hawkeyes twice, meeting on Friday, Sept. 8 at 1 p.m., and Saturday, Sept. 9 at 7 p.m., while also competing against the 22nd-ranked Iowa State Cyclones on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Freshman Kaylee Martin (Sterling, Ill./Sterling) led NIU (0-8) with 10 kills in Tuesday's match at Northern Iowa. For the season, junior Meg Wolowicz (Manitowoc, Wis./Manitowoc Lincoln) ranks third in the MAC with 27 total blocks and fifth in blocks per set at 1.00; senior Anna Brereton (Sun Prairie, Wis./Sun Prairie) ranks eighth in the conference with 99 digs. 

Iowa brings a 6-1 record into the weekend, with its lone blemish coming against then second-ranked Stanford. Annika Olsen ranks second in the Big Ten with 4.60 digs per set while Gabrielle Orr is seventh in the Big Ten, and top-40 nationally, with 10.96 assists per set. Taylor Louis leads the Big Ten with 87 total kills.

The Cyclones of Iowa State bring a perfect 5-0 record into this weekend's action. Last weekend at the Dayton Invitational, Iowa State defeated Dayton (3-0) and Pittsburgh (3-2). Iowa State has five players ranked in the top-5 in the Big 12 in hitting percentage, led by conference leader Samara West at .493; Alexis Conaway is fourth in the league at .395 and Grace Lazard ranks fifth at .388. 

Iowa State will be the fourth team the Huskies have played this season that is ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25 Poll. 

Following this weekend's action, the Huskies will return home on Tuesday, Sept. 12, when they host Illinois State. The match against the Redbirds is scheduled for 7 p.m., and will be available on ESPN3.