Conference play begins this weekend

The Hoosiers open the Big Ten play this weekend as they travel to Madison, Wisc., to take on the Badgers Friday night. Then they travel to Minneapolis on Sunday to face the Golden Gophers. After a good week of practice, Coach Mick Lyon said he's excited about beginning Big Ten play this weekend. \nSophomore forward Kristen Zmijewski said the team is anticipating two tough games.\n"It's our first Big Ten games of the year so we expect them to be very tough, physical games," she said. "Both Wisconsin and Minnesota will play hard."\nSenior defender Carly Everett said the two games this weekend will be a good measure of how the Hoosiers stack up against conference competition.\n"We're really excited for Big Ten play to begin," Everett said. "The games are more physical than non-conference games and it's a good chance to see how we compare to other Big Ten teams."\nThe team heads into this weekend sporting a 2-3-0 record, having won its past two games. The Hoosiers first face off against a tough Wisconsin team who owns a 4-2-1 record. The Badgers are coming off a tough loss to Nebraska in the Rocky Rocco Wisconsin Soccer Invite. In addition to continuing their recent offensive surge, the Hoosiers will need to find a way to shutdown the Badgers' leading scorer, Jenny Kundert, in order to win this Big Ten battle. Everett said the team is confident that they can shutdown opposing teams' leading scorers.\n"Every team has that one huge threat," she said. "We just make sure to have a lot of cover. We're not threatened by players with good stats."\nOn Sunday, the team travels to Minneapolis to square off against a fierce Golden Gophers squad, which currently has a record of 3-1-1. Minnesota is on a two-game winning streak, with recent victories over Florida Atlantic and Western Illinois. The Golden Gophers are led by freshman forward Haley Lentsch, who already has tallied nine points on the season, scoring four goals and recording an assist.\nIn practice this week, the Hoosiers have been working extensively on different defensive lineups and formations in an effort to be ready for any type of offense they might see. Lyon said the team will alter its defense slightly to be fully prepared for this weekend.\n"I don't see [these games] being high scoring affairs," he said. "From our side, we're going to play a little more conservative, and play a little closer to our own goal."\nThe Hoosiers take on the Badgers Friday night at 7:30 p.m. and then face Minnesota at 1 p.m. Sunday.\n-- Contact staff writer Cory Steger at csteger@indiana.edu.