The Illinois volleyball team is back in town.

For the first time since late-August, the Illini will be back at home this weekend as the team faces Maryland and Rutgers to open conference play. The fact that Illinois will be playing at home after three consecutive away tournaments is a relief for the team.

“Being home is a huge advantage for us,” senior middle blocker Anna Dorn said. “We’re getting back into a little bit more of a routine and it’s just comfortable at home. We love playing at Huff.”

Although the venue and the fans will be a familiar sight for Illinois, the two teams they will face this week aren’t as well-known to the Illini. Illinois will start Big Ten play by welcoming the two newest teams in the conference, Maryland and Rutgers, to Huff Hall on Friday and Saturday night, respectively.

The Illini, who haven’t played either the Terrapins or the Scarlet Knights in the last five years, will treat this match as if it’s a continuation of their nonconference schedule. This is a result of the fact that the team doesn’t know as much about this weekend’s competition as it does other Big Ten teams.

Although Illinois doesn’t know as much about its opponents on the weekend from previous matches, Dorn said the Illini will need to be all the more diligent in scouting the teams.

“Going in with a little less information, since it is the beginning of the year, means that we have to be more prepared in terms of being on top of our game plan and really paying attention to what they’re doing offensively,” Dorn said. 

Maryland’s offensive ability may cause Illinois the most problems. The Illini will be forced to stop a high-powered Terrapin offense led by senior outside hitter Adreené Elliott, who is currently third in the Big Ten in kills with 118 through 30 sets, a 3.93 average per set.

Illinois’ defense will rely on its block, led by Dorn, who has 45 blocks on the season — good for sixth in the Big Ten — and freshman libero Brandi Donnelly, who finished last weekend’s tournament with 56 digs in three matches. 

Although the Illini don’t know much about the Terrapins from previous matches, Maryland’s coach, Steve Aird, is a former Penn State assistant coach, which Hambly said may mean the Terrapins may have more insight into how the Illini play.

“They’ll know what they’re getting into and they’ll know how to prepare for us,” Hambly said. “They’ll have a lot more knowledge about us.”

Aird’s knowledge on the Illini doesn’t worry Hambly, as he said that the team will approach the game the same way no matter how much they know about their opponent or vice versa.

“We just played a bunch of teams that we don’t have much history with,” Hambly said. “With it being the first weekend (of Big Ten play) it seems normal. 

“We’ll see where we get in the match. It feels like we’re preparing for the Big Ten because it’s that time but it doesn’t because these are two teams that are different.”

No matter who the Illini play or how much their opponents know about the team, Illinois is just happy to be playing at home.

“It’ll be great to be at home,” Hambly said. “It’s a long time on the road.”

Nicholas can be reached at [email protected] and @IlliniSportsGuy.