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When ESPN comes to town for a volleyball game, you know something big is bound to happen.

This is the case this weekend when No. 21 Badgers return home to face No. 1 Penn State on Friday night, followed by Indiana on Sunday.

The Badgers are coming off another disappointing weekend. They lost to Purdue in five sets last Friday and were swept by then-No. 17 Illinois in Champaign Sunday. This was the second weekend they were swept on the road, with the first time coming against Iowa and Minnesota at the end of September.

“We had a really good week of practice last week, but we weren’t focused when it came time to play in our match,” senior captain Audra Jeffers said. “So now we have been doing a lot of game-like situations in practice and have been focusing in on getting those points when it comes time to play. The team is really focused.”

Since getting back to work this week, the team has been worrying more about what is happening on its side of the net rather than spending as much time concentrating on the opponent. Wisconsin head coach Pete Waite believes his team needs to take care of its own needs before worrying about the opposition.

“It doesn’t matter what they are bringing at you if you are making errors on your own side,” Waite said.

On Friday, the Badgers welcome the Nittany Lions to the Field House where the two teams went to a five-game nail-biter last year.

This year, Penn State comes into the court having not lost a game, let alone a set in the 2008 season. The team is 20-0 for the year with an 8-0 record in conference. Over that time period, it has won 60 straight sets, including 61 straight sets dating back to last year’s NCAA Championship.

The Nittany Lions are led by senior middle blocker Christa Harmotto, who leads the Big Ten and nation in hitting percentage, averaging .512 while racking up 147 kills. Junior setter Alicia Glass also leads the Big Ten in assists, averaging 12. 33 per game. Overall, the team has the top-ranked offense in the conference and one of the best in the nation.

“Penn State is No. 1 and nobody thinks we can beat them,” Waite said. “We are going to go after them.”

To stop Penn State, Waite said the team has been working on its serves and its blocking in an effort to slow down or disrupt the Nittany Lions’ high-powered offense.

“I think this week we are focusing more on us, on our game,” senior outside hitter Morgan Salow said. “Blocking wise, [we want to get] up earlier and faster. Just being ready at all times, 100 percent.”

On Sunday, the Badgers will face Indiana, which finds itself ninth in the conference with an 8-4 overall record and 2-6 in Big Ten Play.

The Hoosiers are led by senior middle blocker Erica Short, who leads the Big Ten in kills with 4.78 per set and in points, averaging 5.39 per set. The Badgers will also have to worry about sophomore middle blocker Ashley Benson on defense, who averages 1.52 blocks per game.

For the Badgers, look for junior outside hitter Brittney Dolgner to continue to have an increased role in the offense. Last weekend, Dolgner came out of her slump to hit for 22 kills against Purdue and had 10 kills against Illinois.

The Badgers, who are ranked No. 21 in the country in the AVCA Poll, are keeping a high morale going into a difficult weekend. They believe each match is a step forward in a learning experience and gets them one step closer to the NCAA Tournament.

“We are really hungry,” Salow said. “This weekend was tough for us, and I think this week we are really buckling down and working on things we saw … last week. I think we are really hungry to take that step forward rather than backward and keep moving on.”