After two narrow five-set victories against Iowa and Northwestern last week to open conference play, Illinois faces two of the top teams in not only the Big Ten but the entire country: No. 4 Purdue and No. 5 Wisconsin.

Despite the Illini needing all five frames to take down the Hawkeyes and Wildcats in their first two Big Ten matches, middle blocker Kyla Swanson still emphasizes the team is undefeated in conference action and a five-set win means the same amount in the standings as a three- or four-set win.

“We know going in that no matter what, every team is gonna give us their best, so we’re always prepared to go three sets, and we’re always prepared to go five sets,” Swanson said. “We know it’s gonna be a battle in this conference.”

The Boilermakers enter Friday’s contest with a six-match winning streak and a 10-1 record, with the team’s only loss of No. 3 Louisville. Purdue also comes in with a 2-0 Big Ten record after taking down then-No. 3 Ohio State in West Lafayette to open conference play before taking down Indiana on the road.

Purdue returns nearly all its production from last season, including four All-Big Ten First-Team inclusions — setter Hayley Bush, defensive specialist Jena Otec and outside hitters Grace Cleveland and Caitlyn Newton — while Otec was named the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year and Cleveland earned First-Team All-America honors.

The last time these two teams met, the Illini pulled off the 3-2 upset in West Lafayette. The Boilermakers went on to secure a NCAA tournament berth, advancing to the quarterfinals before falling to eventual champion Kentucky.

Though Illinois enters the road matchup as the underdog, outside hitter Raina Terry recognizes that anything can happen and any team can win on any given night.

“The Big Ten is the best conference in the country,” Terry said. “It just proves that anything can happen in this conference. Everybody’s good; it’s anybody’s game.”

Wisconsin presents a challenge in its own right, as it is the reigning conference champion after going 14-0 last season in regular-season action. Earning the top seed in the NCAA tournament, the Badgers advanced to the Final Four before falling to No. 4 Texas in the national semifinals.

They also return most of its big contributors from last season, including All-Big Ten first-teamers setter Sydney Hilley, outside hitter Grace Loberg, middle blocker Dana Rettke and right side hitter Devyn Robinson and second-teamers libero Lauren Barnes and middle blocker Danielle Hart. Hilley, an unanimous first-team selection, also won the conference’s Setter of the Year award.

The Badgers are 9-1 this season and picked up their only loss of the season in their first conference match of the year, a five-set upset defeat at the hands of the Maryland Terrapins. Wisconsin beat No. 10 Baylor and No. 8 Kentucky in nonconference play earlier in the year.

Illinois travels to West Lafayette to take on Purdue on Friday at 6 p.m. before returning to Champaign on Sunday to take on Wisconsin at Huff Hall at noon. The Illini will face both teams in reverse fixtures next week.

“It’s gonna be a tough matchup, so you’ve got No. 4 and No. 5 in the country, back-to-back-to-back-to-back,” said head coach Chris Tamas. “It’s just part of the challenge of being in the conference, and I told the team yesterday I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s gonna make you stronger and we’ll learn from it, and we’ll be able to hopefully come out with some wins in there as well.”

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