Hoosiers travel north to face favorable foes

For the first time this Big Ten season, the No. 47 Hoosiers will be favored to win both matches in a weekend.

Indiana, 15-6 (4-3), heads northward and into the central time zone to play Minnesota and Wisconsin, two teams that are unranked and below the Hoosiers in the Big Ten standings.

This will be the first time that the team will go on the road after a four game home stand, which freshman Alecia Kauss said is different from playing in the comfort of home.

“Here it’s a home court advantage with the fans that come,” Kauss said. “But I think we can bring the same level of intensity. We’ve shown that when we’ve been on the road in past weekends.”

At 4:30 p.m. Friday, the Hoosiers will play the Golden Gophers. Minnesota, who is 13-5 (3-4) on the season, has been struggling mightily as of late.

After rocketing to a 12-1 start to the season, the Gophers have proceeded to lose four of their past five matches. Most recently, they lost a heartbreaker to Ohio State 4-3 in which five of the six singles matches had to go to three sets.

Oddly enough, Minnesota has stumbled at home, as well. Not winning a home match in more than a month, the last time the Gophers were victorious in Minnesota was February 26.

After battling some gophers, IU will hop on the bus to face off against a group of badgers at noon Sunday.

Wisconsin 10-9 (1-6) shares the cellar of the Big Ten with Iowa and Michigan State, two teams that IU has already beaten this season.

Similar to Minnesota, the Badgers are in the midst of a skid, having lost five of their past six matches. They will also be looking for their first home conference win of the season.

Wisconsin’s lone Big Ten victory came against Michigan State, who is 0-7 in the conference.

IU will be flying out to Minnesota, which Kauss explained can be tiresome.

“Sometimes you’re a little tired after a flight,” Kauss said. “But every time we fly, we don’t play till the next day, and we get to practice the morning of the match.”

Kauss has been a big part of the team’s recent success, as she has gone 4-0 in her past four singles matches, including her first victory against a nationally ranked opponent in No. 121 Sam Critser of Michigan.

“I think I’m coming into my own,” Kauss said. “I feel like my rhythm has become a lot better.”

After a bit of a slump in which she did not feel like she was playing to her full potential, Kauss has gotten her swing more on track, and the results have reflected this improvement.

“I’m just getting my strokes grooved better,” Kauss said. “I wouldn’t say I was struggling, but I didn’t feel like I was playing the best I could, and this past weekend I really felt I was finally hitting like I can and driving through it. I’m playing how I know I can play.”