Finally, a little familiarity for the ISU volleyball team.

Up until this point, every matchup the Cyclones have had was with a foe new to them this season. Sure, game film helps — but nothing quite compares to having seen and battled the enemy on the other side of the net.

Now, that changes.

The Big 12 conference only has nine schools that play NCAA volleyball, so to fill out the schedule each team gets to play all of the others twice. Iowa State, along with the rest of the conference, is at the midway point, having played every other team once.

Now on the back end of Big 12 play, the Cyclones know exactly what to expect from each opponent.

“I think there’s a lot of opportunity ahead for us,” said ISU coach Christy Johnson-Lynch. “Obviously we’re familiar with them, but they’re familiar with us as well.”

With the advantage of knowing what to watch for comes the added bonus that Iowa State will play five of its final eight matches on its home court.

The Cyclones are a perfect 3-0 at Hilton Coliseum in Big 12 play, but are 0-5 away from home. Despite having opportunities to close out matches and clinch victories away from home, they have not been able to.

Having a majority of their remaining matches in the friendly confines of Hilton Coliseum could go a long way to help the Cyclones improve their image for the postseason.

“This is probably the best place in the conference to play, so I think it’s really going to help a lot,” said libero Caitlin Nolan.

Sitting at 11-8 overall and 3-5 in the Big 12, however, leaves the Cyclones desiring a road win or two even if they win out at home. Though the team is young and hasn’t found success away from home, they’ll have to find a way to get it done.

“Playing on the road is hard and it’s especially hard for younger, inexperienced teams,” Johnson-Lynch said. “We’ll try to spend as much time as we can in those gyms the night before and the day of and hopefully getting a little bit more familiar and more confident in that gym.”

To get the ball rolling with a ‘W,’ Iowa State will have to pull off an upset of No. 5 Texas at Hilton. For the first time this year, the Longhorns look vulnerable after falling to Oklahoma at home in straight sets on Oct. 25.

Though Texas has finally faltered, Iowa State still has its work cut out.

“We just have to stay focused and be confident in who we are and the abilities we have in our team and just keep playing,” said outside hitter Victoria Hurtt. “This is just a great week of practice just to have to get better and gain that confidence and be ready on Sunday against Texas.”