One of Hawkeye volleyball’s toughest slate of matches comes this weekend on the road.

Iowa will take on No. 3 Minnesota this evening, followed by an Oct. 21 rematch against No. 9 Wisconsin.

Having beaten Wisconsin already this season, the Hawkeyes find themselves in a weird place preparing for their weekend matches against two teams in the top 10.

You could call it “cautious confidence.”

The squad has not yet seen action against Minnesota, which presents a special challenge.

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Minnesota has been stellar thus far this season, and it is on one of its hottest streaks. The Gophers have a 14-2 record, and they are undefeated (8-0) in the Big Ten. They have gone as far as sweeping No. 4 Penn State, No. 7 Illinois, and No. 9 Wisconsin. Simply put, they’re good.

Statistically, Minnesota is nearly unmatched in the Big Ten. The Gophers lead the conference in assists per set (13.85), kills per set (15.12) and digs per set (16.38). This is largely due to Taylor Morgan and Stephanie Samedy, who are among the conference’s leaders in the categories.

Most recently, Iowa dropped a five-set match to No. 17 Purdue. A lot went right for the Hawkeyes in the match, but a rough fifth set led to the loss.

“We have a lot of bright things that are happening in our program,” Iowa head coach Bond Shymansky said. “We have some nice balance. I thought we put good sweat equity into the match, but in the end, you have to be tough.”

Indeed, Iowa will need to be tough to put up a fight against Minnesota.

The Hawkeyes are no strangers to long matches against top-ranked teams. They believe this could help them upset the Gophers.

After the match in Minneapolis, the Hawkeyes will continue the road trip against the Badgers.

Iowa handed Wisconsin a loss earlier this season, and the Hawkeyes will try to build upon that success.

It also has given them confidence, important in a weekend in which the squad will face two top-10 opponents.

“Since [we] have had a win against [Wisconsin] already this season, it helps with knowing [we can compete] and with being confident coming into this weekend,” senior Molly Kelly said. “We are capable of beating both teams.”

The Hawkeyes were certainly successful against the Badgers the first time around. Junior Cali Hoye put up 30 kills in the match, the most for an Iowa player since 1997. Kelly had 22 digs, and sophomore Brie Orr put up 59 assists.

They did something right the first time, so preparations will be very similar.

“It’s the same preparation, making sure we know the scouting report,” senior Taylor Louis said. “We’re going to get after it in practice, working on small-ball stuff, serving, passing. Preparation is always the same; it’s just how we come out and compete.”

It won’t be easy, but a win against either of these teams would be a huge asset to the squad’s résumé. In a world in which the Hawkeyes are continually fighting to gain respect and earn a place in postseason volleyball, nothing can be taken for granted.