After ripping through its non-conference schedule virtually unscathed, the Big Ten women's volleyball teams will turn their attention to the conference as the climb to the top of the Big Ten begins this weekend.
With a combined record of 78 wins and 22 losses in non-conference play this season, the Big Ten has established itself as the frontrunner as the top conference in the nation by defeating nationally ranked teams such as Pacific, Hawaii, Texas and Florida.
Entering tomorrow's action, the conference has six teams ranked in the top 25 (No.3 Penn State is 11-1, No.9 Minnesota is 11-0, No. 14 Wisconsin is 10-1, No. 17 Michigan State is 7-2, No. 21 Michigan is 8-1 and No.25 Ohio State is 10-0.)
Though the defending NCAA champion, Penn State, is the odds-on favorite to repeat as conference champion for its third straight year in a row. The quest for the top will be a lot tougher as several of the Big Ten squads have a lot of experience returning and the teams have slowly started to level off from top to bottom.
"The Big Ten is tough," Penn State sophomore middle hitter Mishka Levy said. "On any given night, there are teams that can go out and beat you, so you just have be ready to play every night."
While no one has been able to do it in the past two seasons, this could be the best chance for the other Big Ten schools to dethrone the Nittany Lions since the squad graduated two All-Americans in Lauren Cacciamani and Bonnie Bremner.
The team with the best chance to do it is the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
No. 9 Minnesota, 11-0
The Golden Gophers started out the season with a bang after defeating Pacific in three games earlier this season and defeating another Pac-10 opponent in California. Heading into the preseason Minnesota had several solid returnees, including sophomore setter Lindsey Berg.
The Hawaii native has already been named the most valuable player in a pair of tournaments the Golden Gophers have participated in this season.
Despite being just a sophomore, Berg has enjoyed the team's success and, much like her coach Mike Herbett, she likes the team's chances this season in the Big Ten.
"In all my time here I feel this is the best team we have had," Herbett said. "We are really pleased with Lindsey. She has played great for us so far and continues to get better every time she plays."
While Berg is the floor leader for Minnesota, junior outside hitter Charnette Fair received All-Tournament honors last year.
Minnesota opens Big Ten play this weekend at home against Purdue and Illinois.
No 14.Wisconsin, 10-1
For the Badgers to be successful, junior middle blocker Sherisa Livingston will need to be the answer for them. Livingston is considered by some of the coaches around the Big Ten as the best all around player and has the ability to take over matches.
So far this season, she has earned a pair of most valuable player honors in the two tournaments the Badgers have participated in.
"Sherisa is a very good player and an excellent middle blocker," Penn State head coach Russ Rose said. "She is one player who we will have to try to keep the ball out of hands when we play them."
While Livingston is a major reason why Wisconsin has done so well this season, there is a pair of her teammates opposing coaches will have to watch out for, outside hitter Jenny Maastrich and Megan Kohnen.
The Badgers will open their quest for the Big Ten this Friday at home when they take on Penn State.
No.3 Penn State, 11-1
This year's Big Ten favorite to repeat as champion will enter the Big Ten season very similar to the way they did last year.
The Nittany Lions entered the Big Ten last season with one loss.
This year, they also enter the Big Ten with one loss.
Ironic maybe.
However, this year's squad knows it has a long way to go to get back to the level of play that took it to the top of the Big Ten and made them NCAA champions some nine months ago.
This year's squad will have just two remaining starters from last year's team.
Katie Schumacher returns along with fellow co-captain Amanda Rome. The two will be looked at to carry a young squad that is primarily made of sophomores and freshmen.
Though the squad is young, they are powerful. Rose decided to start Mishka Levy and has not been disappointed. Levy has been the go-to player throughout the year and will be force a whenever she gets the opportunity.
The other two starters are a pair of freshmen in Cara Smith and freshmen setter Jessica Hayden. The two have seen a lot of action throughout the past two weeks and have played with the confidence of upperclassmen.
While some might be surprised to see Rose start two freshmen, Northwestern coach Keyler Chan was not.
"Coach Rose runs a great a program up there and he recruits some of the best players in the country so I am not surprised to see a freshman step in and play for him," he said.
Penn State heads out to tackle Wisconsin Friday, then travels to take on Northwestern on Saturday.
No.17 Michigan State, 7-2
For the Spartans it will be business as usual as Michigan State will continue to fight its way for respect in a tough conference.
The Spartans only losses were against nationally ranked No.1 Nebraska and the No.7 UCLA Bruins, the only team to knock off Penn State this season.
Despite a strong performance by senior outside hitter Sarah Gustin, who has averaged just under six kills per contest and rattled off 59 kills this past weekend, the Spartans know they need to see this in order for them to earn a top spot in the Big Ten this season.
With Gustin's solid play she was blessed this week with a share of the Co - Big Ten Player of the Week honor.
While the Spartans only advanced to the second round of last year's NCAA tournament, they have four seniors in their starting lineup who hope they end their collegiate career on a high note, which might include a share of the Big Ten title.
This weekend Michigan State will open against No. 25 Ohio State Friday and then return home to take on interstate rival No.21 Michigan
No. 21 Michigan, 8-1
Much like several of the other Big Ten teams, Michigan has dominated the tournaments they have played in.
The Wolverines have spent the past two weekends beating up on teams that have half the talent they do.
Michigan defeated Arkansas in three games last Saturday and once again witnessed solid play from senior outside hitter Sarah Behnke and junior outside hitter Nicole Kacor. The talented pair combined for 29 kills in the three games.
Other Wolverines that have stepped up for Michigan are Joanna Fielder and Katrina Lehman who have played well on the defensive side of the ball.
Michigan will get its first test Friday when it travels across the state to East Lansing.
No. 25 Ohio State, 10-0
In a Buckeye world the record would speak for itself, however entering the Big Ten being 10-0 doesn't mean a thing. The Buckeyes have played second caliber teams and have yet taken on a team that ranks in the top 50, let alone the Top 25.
Ohio State has played teams like Liberty, Temple and Seton Hall far from spectacular and might find themselves in an uphill climb when they take on some of the better opponents the Big Ten has to offer.
Despite all this, they have received solid performances from senior middle hitter Dana Stearns, who has a team high 119 kills, and fellow teammates Shelly Draeger and Sue Calligaris. Setting up the offense is sophomore setter Katie Virtue who has averaged just under 14 assists per game.
While Ohio State leads the Big Ten in most statistical categories, the fact remains Ohio State has been unchallenged and will have a tough time against the Big Ten this year.
The Buckeyes open with Michigan State Friday at home.
Illinois, 9-2
When Illinois entered the season there were many questions that needed to be answered. One question was how can a team filled with youth and inexperience make it in the Big Ten?
Well their answer might have come in senior middle blocker Betsy Spicer who has answered the call and stepped up for Illinois this past weekend and won a share of the Big Ten Player of the Week for the second time this season.
Spicer smoked New Hampshire with a career-high 24 kills.
While Illinois lacks experience, one thing it does not lack is size in 6-foot-4 Anne Koester and 6-foot-5 Lisa Argabright. The pair will be looked to shutdown the middle for the Fighting Illini this season.
Despite being young the team could end up making some noise this season in the Big Ten.
Illinois begins Big Ten play Friday at Iowa.
Indiana 9-1
After starting the season on a roll, the Hoosiers will look to enter the Big Ten with some confidence. Freshmen Nicole Hiu is averaging five kills per game and will need to continue to play well to keep Indiana in the hunt throughout the rest of the season.
The Hoosiers will take on Northwestern Friday.
Purdue 8-4
The Boilermakers enter the Big Ten schedule on a positive note. The team has won their last six matches and will look to continue their success this weekend when they travel to Minnesota.
While Purdue ranks in the lower part of the Big Ten, they cannot be overlooked due to the strong play of senior outside hitter Julie Doud who knocked down 59 kills last weekend.
Iowa 3-3
The Hawkeyes will head into the season feeling positive despite its .500 mark. Iowa has witnessed solid hitting from junior Sara Meyermann who was named Most Valuable Player in a tournament a few weeks ago.
While not much might be thought of Iowa, no one can be overlooked in the Big Ten.
Northwestern 3-7
The Wildcats are the only team in the Big Ten that does not to have a winning record. The team has struggled early but hopes to play a threat to other teams in the conference this season. Outside hitter Erika Lange feels the team should be optimistic and looks forward to Friday.
"We've been improving in every single match. With these wins we were really learning how to win," she said. "I think that would give us lots of momentum for this season. It would give us some respect from other teams. We are looking to upset some teams this year in the conference."
While the heavyweights consist of Minnesota, Penn State and Wisconsin, one thing is guaranteed, it will be a battle every time any team in the Big Ten steps out on the court.
