BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Northern Illinois University volleyball (11-4,4-1 MAC) team fought until the very end, but saw its eight-game win streak snapped (25-23, 25-22, 25-21) via the Buffalo Bulls Saturday afternoon at Alumni Arena.

"They've got a very physical team and played really well. They did a good job defending their home court," said head volleyball coach Ray Gooden. "The story of today was, in each set, there were probably three or four plays that were the difference between either side winning, and they were fortunate to win the majority of those today,"

How it Happened: In the first frame, Emily Dykes (Winterville, N.C./Ayden-Grifton) logged the first kill of NIU's 40 total on the day, but the Bulls (10-7,2-3 MAC) followed by going on a 6-2 run as scoring opened. The Huskies came within one point (8-9) after Brianna Scuric's (East Troy, Wis./East Troy) kill from Ella Mihacevich (Brunswick, Ohio/Padua Franciscan), but another 5-1 Buffalo run widened the gap. NIU fought back, forcing four-straight set points, but fell 25-23 in the end.

In the second frame, NIU's 4-1 run, which was capped by a Buffalo attack error, brought the Huskies within one at 16-15. The two teams continued to trade blows while back-to-back blocks from Charli Atiemo (Milford, Mich./Farmington Hills Mercy), Sammi Lockwood (Cary, Ill./Prairie Ridge) and Mihacevich made the score 23-22, Bulls. But two quick kills from Buffalo ended the second frame, 25-22.

The Huskies found themselves down early after a 5-1 Bulls' run in the final set, but fought back after a 3-0 swing put NIU in front 8-7. Later, the two squads traded points before Nikolette Nedic's (Willowbrook, Ill./Hinsdale Central) kill from Mihacevich made the score 22-21 in favor of the Bulls. From there, three quick points helped Buffalo seal the sweep over NIU.    

Notables: The Huskies posted 11 team blocks compared to Buffalo's four – Lockwood led with six while Mihacevich, Atiemo and Dykes all had four each. Likewise, Atiemo and Dykes led the team with 10 kills each. Mihacevich posted 34 assists and Francesca Bertucci (Chicago, Ill./De La Salle) led the bumpers with 15 digs.  

Up Next: The Huskies have a much-deserved break before continuing their march Friday, Oct. 7 when Bowling Green comes to town for a 6 p.m. matchup at Victor E. Court.

"It's been a challenging stretch here. So, I'm super proud of what our team has been able to accomplish up to this point. We just know that every match is going to be a dogfight and we just have to go back, rest up and get ready for another tough weekend coming up."