DEKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University men's soccer team closes its current three-game homestand on Saturday night, October 20, as the Huskies host Akron. Game time against the Zips is scheduled for 7 p.m. NIU students attending Saturday's game will be entered into a raffle to win a NIU scarf. 

"These are the games you come to play college soccer for, to play against the best teams," said NIU head coach Ryan Swan. "Akron was a Final Four team last year and has a great history. Hopefully everyone is excited about it and it is an opportunity for our guys to showcase themselves. If we could get a great crowd out from the NIU community that were certainly help us as well."

NIU (7-5-1, 0-2 MAC) played to a 2-2 draw with Drake on Tuesday night (Oct. 16) in DeKalb. The Huskies fell behind 2-0 before freshman Nick Markanich (Bourbonnais, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais) scored a pair of goals in the final 20 minutes, both assisted by his twin brother Anthony Markanich (Bourbonnais, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais), to help earn NIU the draw. 

The goals were the sixth and seventh of the season for Nick Markanich as he leads the Huskies in both goals and points (14); Nick Markanich currently ranks third for third in the MAC in goals and tied for fourth in points. Anthony Markanich is currently second in the team in points (three goals, six assists) while senior Kevin Rodriguez (Pasadena, Texas/Deer Park) ranks second in the conference with seven assists.  

Akron enters Saturday's match with a 6-5-2 overall record, including a 0-1-1 mark in conference play. The Zips played to a scoreless draw at Bowling Green and fell in overtime to West Virginia in their two conference matches but are coming off a 1-0 home win against eighth-ranked Creighton on Tuesday (Oct. 16). 

David Egbo leads Akron in scoring with 19 points (eight goals, three assists), second-best in the MAC, while Ben Lundt has played 12 of 13 matches in goal for the Zips, posting a 1.36 goals against average and a .646 save percentage. Akron has appeared in 11 consecutive NCAA Tournaments dating back to 2007. 

"Akron is a very good team, they just beat a very good Creighton team," said Swan. "We expect them to come out and be possession-oriented, they have some very dynamic players so it is going to be a battle. It is going to be about staying organized, staying disciplined and if we can do that we will have every chance of getting a result in this game."

"Both teams are very young. Everybody has a number of games under their belt, so there is a certain level of maturity, but whoever can stay the most composed and stick to the plan will have the advantage because there is a lot on the line."

Following Saturday night's contest, the Huskies will travel to Loyola-Chicago on Tuesday, October 23, for their final non-conference game of the season. Kickoff between the Huskies and Ramblers is slated for 7 p.m.