Head coach Bond Shymansky has been ill this week with No. 16 Wisconsin, No. 9 Minnesota looming.

By Kyle Mann  |  [email protected]

When the Iowa volleyball team hits the floor for a pair of matches at home this weekend, it could potentially be without head coach Bond Shymansky.

Shymansky has been working for the last few weeks to get his team out of a losing streak that has now reached eight games since the beginning of Big Ten action. But after falling ill in the past week, he has missed several practices; the Hawkeyes would like him to be on the bench this weekend, but that might not be possible.

The Hawkeyes (10-11, 0-8 Big Ten) will host No. 16 Wisconsin at 7 p.m. today and No. 9 Minnesota at 7 p.m. on Saturday in Carver-Hawkeye.

Being without their head coach in the week leading into two matches with ranked opponents is a less-than-ideal scenario, but with assistant coach Michaela Franklin, the team is in good hands.

“What’s nice working for Bond is he does an excellent job of really allowing our staff to take on responsibilities, step up, and speak in practice and run things,” Franklin said. “I think [the team] will still feel right at home having us. His presence will be missed, but because he does such a great job, I think we’ll be OK.”

Without Shymansky, the coaching staff is tasked with trying to correct some things that have dumped the Hawkeyes into an eight-game losing streak. For a team that once stood 10-3 and was on the fringes of the top 25, sitting solidly in the category of others receiving votes, however, it’s not as if the team starts from scratch.

Instead, the Hawkeyes feel like their main goal is to get back to way they played when they beat Iowa State and upset Texas A&M.

“It comes down to first contact, and our serving and passing was really good then, and that boosted our confidence,” Lauren Brobst said. “Right now, our confidence is just down because of what’s been happening in the Big Ten.”

So the general mindset among the Hawks is they know they are talented and could be a good team. That won’t come easily; they will face two more ranked opponents as they try to regain some momentum.

The Badgers are 12-6 overall, 4-4 in the conference. And after back-to-back losses against Minnesota, the Badgers could be particularly hungry for a victory.

The Gophers could be the hottest team in the Big Ten right now. Minnesota is 15-3, 7-1 in the Big Ten, and it has won six-straight matches en route to the No. 9 ranking in the coaches’ poll.

As the Hawkeyes have done every week, they realize that every Big Ten team is a tough opponent, and the most reliable way to combat them is to focus on what they do on their side of the net.

“Like we do with every team, just worry more so about what’s on our side of the court,” Loxley Keala said. “Being in system, executing, and terminating. That’s all it takes.”

Follow @kylefmann on twitter for Iowa volleyball news, updates, and analysis.