Invitational opens with Fighting Irish

The IU women's volleyball team will travel to South Bend, Ind., this weekend to partake in the Notre Dame Invitational, which will be the first time the Hoosiers have competed in the event. The invitational is comprised of four teams: IU, Notre Dame, South Carolina and Utah. \nThe Hoosiers (4-2) will open with a match against the No. 15 ranked Fighting Irish on Friday night. Notre Dame comes into the event with the program's highest ranking since 1996. Last weekend, the Irish (5-1) captured the Longhorn Classic after sweeping Texas in the championship match. The Hoosiers have yet to play against a ranked opponent so far this season and are looking forward to the challenge.\n"I think it'll be a lot of fun," senior middle blocker Melissa Brewer said. "The pressure isn't on us, they're the ones that are ranked, and we can go out there and play free of pressure. It's all on them."\nIU will only play two matches in the event, missing out on Utah and playing South Carolina instead. The Gamecocks (2-4) have faced four ranked opponents already and will be adding a fifth to that list this weekend as they face off against Notre Dame.\nLast weekend, the Hoosiers held the TIS/Taylor Invitational and compiled a record of 2-1 during the event, with victories over Southeast Missouri State and IUPUI before falling to Wisconsin-Green Bay in the championship match. The TIS/Taylor Invitational marked the second time in as many tournaments that the Hoosiers ascended to the championship match only to lose in the final. The week before, IU was defeated by Miami at the Hurricane Invitational in Coral Gables, Fla. While the Hoosiers have accumulated two championship match losses, coach Katie Weismiller said the team's focus is not deterred by their defeats.\n"It was a learning lesson," Weismiller said. "I give this team a lot of credit. We came out with more focus than ever in practice. It was an education and a great lesson to learn."\nWith the Big Ten season looming on the horizon, the Hoosiers' practices have become more concentrated as the team looks to get into top form as the competition will only get tougher. \n"Practice this week has been very strong," Weismiller said. "We're working hard and I think the intensity has definitely picked up."\nPerforming well in practice is one thing, but the Hoosiers know that they have to translate their strong performances in practices into match success. The team has rotated some new players into the rotation and on-court communication. Other smaller aspects of the game are still in need of some fine tuning. \n"I don't think we're where we need to be yet, but we're definitely moving in the right direction," Brewer said. "Everyday we get better, every tournament we get better. We're further along than I've ever seen us."\nThe team is led by Brewer, juniors Christina Archibald, Beth Heimann and Victoria Zimmerman. Both Brewer and Archibald were named to the TIS/Taylor Invitational and Hurricane Invitational All-Tournament teams. Archibald leads the Big Ten with 106 kills and ranks fourth in the league averaging 4.42 kills per game. Heimann has been a steadying force on the defensive side of the ball. She has collected 10 or more digs in five of IU's first six matches, and ranks third in the Big Ten with 100 kills and fourth in the conference in digs, averaging 4.17 a game. Zimmerman is largely responsible for the Hoosiers' lofty kill numbers. The Barrington, Ill., native set the single-season school record last season with 1,765 assists and ranked ninth in the nation with 13.58 assists per game. She has picked up right where she left off, recording 303 assists in the first six matches of the season. \nIU has not faced off against Notre Dame since 1998, and the Hoosiers are looking forward to battling their in-state rival. \n"I think we're going to be fired up for this coming weekend," Archibald said. "It will be really exciting."\n--Contact staff writer Matt Glenesk at mglenesk@indiana.edu