Penn State women’s volleyball has two regular-season matches left in its conference season, including a top-four showdown on Friday against No. 2 Nebraska. Boasting a 27-2 record, the Nittany Lions control their destiny to clinch the Big Ten title and show the NCAA selection committee why they deserve a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament by winning their last two matches.

However, Penn State must first take care of business on the road against Rutgers on Wednesday before setting up a Big Ten title decider against Nebraska in Rec Hall. If Penn State doesn’t beat Rutgers, then Nebraska will officially clinch the Big Ten title no matter the outcome on Friday.

Even though Rutgers boasts the worst record in the Big Ten at 1-17, the Nittany Lions know any conference foe can present a challenge, especially on the road.

For that reason, head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley said it was important to not look ahead to the match against Nebraska and prepare the same for every team.

“I’ve said this before, [the Big Ten], regardless of teams’ records, [has] great players and everyone plays better at home, too,” Schumacher-Cawley said. “The team knows that. They know that they need to take every match one at a time and be prepared.”

The message has been true for the Nittany Lions this season as they have beaten all of their opponents in the Big Ten except No. 7 Wisconsin. In that match, Penn State came off a four-set win against unranked Northwestern and had to travel the next day to take on Wisconsin. The Badgers swept the Nittany Lions.

Despite having only one loss in conference play, the Nittany Lions have struggled to put away inferior opponents in three sets in the Big Ten. In 10 matches against teams with a record of below .500 in conference play, Penn State has pulled off two sweeps during that stretch. The only teams that the Nittany Lions swept were Michigan State on the road and Michigan at Rec Hall.

Even though the team has struggled to sweep inferior opponents this season, the Nittany Lions have shown a lot of resilience in raising their level of play against ranked teams. In 10 matches against ranked teams this season, Penn State won eight of those 10 matches with their only losses coming on the road against No. 1 Pitt and No. 7 Wisconsin. The team recorded sweeps in five of those eight wins.

Penn State’s regular-season finale against Nebraska has been sold out. Assuming the Nittany Lions take care of business against Rutgers, the stage will be set for an exciting atmosphere at Rec Hall for the Big Ten title against a Cornhuskers team that is unbeaten in conference play.

Even though Nebraska will have one more conference game to play after the Penn State game, the outcome of this match has plenty of meaning. With a win, Penn State will have the head-to-head tiebreaker to clinch a Big Ten title.

The Cornhuskers have won their past seven matches against the Nittany Lions. Last season, Penn State had a two-set lead against Nebraska at Rec Hall in its “Wear White” atmosphere before the Cornhuskers pulled off the reverse sweep. Even though the Nittany Lions lost, the team used its home-court advantage to give Nebraska problems in dealing with a hostile environment at Rec Hall.

With Nebraska bringing back all its starters from last year and other players into its program, Schumacher-Cawley said she took some things away from last year’s match and used them in preparation for this year’s showdown.

“I don’t think we were as aggressive last year as we are this year. So, moving and taking a step forward in that area can help us score points,” Schumacher-Cawley said. “Just to play at Rec Hall and with a crowd like that is pretty amazing.”

Rec Hall has been a valuable asset for the Nittany Lions, who are unbeaten at home this season. Both of their losses this season have come on the road. For that reason, Penn State will want to maximize its home-court advantage this time around against Nebraska as it bids to clinch hosting a regional in the NCAA Tournament.

“There’s nothing like being at home, to not have to travel, and to have an opportunity to stay here would be amazing,” Schumacher-Cawley said. “It’s something that you work for all year for in terms of getting wins and putting yourself in a great position in preseason. We need to win these next two matches, and we’ll see what the committee thinks.”