The last time the Wisconsin volleyball team played a match in the UW Field House, it dispatched Iowa State in the second round of the NCAA tournament on its way to its third-straight Sweet 16 appearance.

Now, more than three months have passed, and the Badgers are ready to play before the home crowd again.

"There's no place like the Field House," senior setter Jackie Simpson said. "It's definitely something we have been looking forward to."

Wisconsin will take on in-state rival UW-Milwaukee in its first of two matches at home this spring. The two teams have become familiar foes over the last year as the Panthers came up to Madison last spring and the Badgers traveled to Milwaukee in the fall. Wisconsin came out on top in both matches.

"Milwaukee's always a scrappy team," head coach Pete Waite said. "They are a well-coached team and are good ball-handlers."

Along with playing the Panthers several times over the last year, several members of the team know their players quite well.

"A number of their players played on club teams with our players, so they are real familiar to us," Waite said. "Amanda Berkley's sister is an assistant coach for the team, so we got a lot of good ties to the program."

Something that has not avoided either of these programs is injuries and illness. UW-Milwaukee has several players out with injuries, so several seniors from last year's squad are coming back to play this spring, Waite said.

Wisconsin will also have several players out due to injuries or illnesses. Junior Morgan Salow has been out this spring with mononucleosis, and sophomore Caity DuPont is set to have back surgery Wednesday, Waite said.

However, the injuries have given other members of the team opportunity to play different positions and show that they deserve more court time come fall.

"Every minute they can be on the court gives them the experiences they need for next fall," Waite said of his younger players.

One of the players you can expect to see playing in a different position is senior Jocelyn Wack. Wisconsin's libero will be returning to her natural position playing on the left side, a position she has not played in game action since coming to Wisconsin.

Several other players will also have the opportunity to show they belong on the court.

"People can have spots," Waite said. "Maya (Carroll) got a chance to be in there. [Katherine] Dykstra has a chance to be in there. They are proving to us now before any other players get back on the court or the freshmen come in that they want those positions."

Even though he will not have all his regulars out on the court, the one thing Waite is looking for in this match is improvement from everybody, especially in blocking.

"The biggest thing we have to improve on is our discipline in all techniques," Waite said. "We weren't doing a very good job of team blocking, so we need to work on our footwork and hand techniques. Our serve receive we need to be stronger at."