Team hopes to turn around record

When the volleyball team takes the court this weekend to battle Michigan and Michigan State it will be the beginning of the Hoosiers second chance at success. This weekend marks the second half of the Big Ten season.\n"There\'s a new life," coach Katie Weismiller said. "We've (played) everybody once. We've been pleased with a couple performances, but overall, improvement is needed. We get to see the teams again, and get revenge."\nLast week, IU (12-8, 3-7 in Big Ten play) dropped matches to No. 13 Penn State and No. 11 Ohio State. Each match was lost in three straight games. IU has managed only two wins in the last nine matches.\nBut there were no signs of discouragement during practice this week. The team spent the week focusing on their most vulnerable spots, but even during the grueling three-hour workouts, the players kept smiles on their faces.\n"We\'re frustrated, but we're working really hard," sophomore setter Laurie Gardner said. "The attitude at practice has gotten a lot better, and we're pushing each other. Hopefully we'll see the results this weekend."\nThe Hoosiers focused mainly on defense during the practices. IU was held to only 78 digs on the last two matches combined as compared to the 100 that their opponents had. IU also focused on passing, which has been a trouble area since the beginning.\nOffensively, the Hoosiers are posting solid numbers. Four players have two hundred or more kills this season. Senior outside hitter Amanda Welter leads the group with 269, followed by sophomore outside hitter Hillary Toivonen (258), freshman outside hitter Nikki Hill (209) and freshman middle blocker Melissa Brewer (200). \nIU, seventh in the Big Ten, could gain ground on the Spartans (12-7, 5-5) and avenge an early season defeat.\n"(Michigan State's) a good team," Weismiller said. "They absolutely put us away last time, so I expect them to be pretty confident, hopefully a little overconfident."\nIn order to overcome the Spartans and Wolverines, IU will have to remain focused, something the Hoosiers haven't done during close matches, namely the one against Michigan.\n"Our team feels that was a mental loss," Weismiller said. "We were up, and then we lost so many straight points, so we're just going to have to keep it up on the court."\nThe Wolverines (13-8, 3-7) are tied with IU for seventh place in the Big Ten. The Hoosiers will be ready to go up against Michigan, because they feel that the previous Michigan defeat should have been an IU victory, Weismiller said.\nAlthough this weekend is seen as a new beginning, the Hoosiers hope the results will be different from the first time around.\n"We're up and down a lot (in the first half of the season), and we need to find a consistency somehow," Gardner said. "If we can get two wins, then we can get momentum for the next couple weeks in the Big Ten."\nWelter said the upcoming matches are "huge.".\n"They're at home, they're against teams we lost to, so it's really important to get a win at home," she said. "Maybe that way, people will start to realize that we're picking it up for the rest of the season"