Playing two of the top teams in the nation within seven days is a challenge, but the ISU volleyball team sees the first game as a way to prepare for the second.

After facing No. 3 Nebraska last week, the Cyclones (16-9) will go against another top team in the country on Saturday. Iowa State will play Texas (18-3) Saturday, in hopes of an upset against the No. 4 ranked Longhorns.

“We’re going to have to come out ready to play from the very start,” said freshman outside hitter Rachel Hockaday.

The Cyclones will have to come out just has hard as they did against Nebraska in order to come up with an upset against Texas.

“The preparation is actually somewhat similar,” said coach Christy Johnson. “They’re both physical, we have to play at the same level and somewhat the same strategy.”

Johnson said the Cyclones will benefit from that preparation.

“We can use that strategy to take into Saturday,” Hockaday said.

While Texas and Nebraska are similar in some respects, Texas is a better offensive team, hitting nearly 100 points better than Nebraska.

“You have to try to put up the biggest block you can and play great defense behind that,” Johnson said.

In the previous meeting with the Longhorns, the Cyclones lost 3-0 in Austin. In the last two sets, Iowa State stayed with Texas, dropping both sets 27-25.

“We just weren’t able to finish,” junior setter Kaylee Manns said. “If a couple points would’ve gone a different way we would’ve beat them 3-0.”

Iowa State was physical with the Longhorns earlier in the season. The Cyclones stayed even with Texas in blocks, and finished only seven kills behind.

“I feel like we can take some confidence from the last time we played them,” Hockaday said. “We played them tough and we can use that.”

Texas outside hitter Destinee Hooker put down 19 kills against the Cyclones at Austin. With an average of 4.28 kills per set, Hooker leads the conference.

“She’s difficult to stop because you could put two or three blockers on her and she’s still able to hit up above the block,” Johnson said.

The game is sure to be a battle of the outsiders, between Hooker and Iowa State’s Victoria Henson. While Hooker leads the conference in kills per set, Henson is third in the Big 12.

“Their style and technique is very different, but Hooker’s a go-to for them, and Victoria is for us — and everybody knows it,” Johnson said. “So it’ll be an interesting battle to see those two slug it out.”

Iowa State has only lost one conference game at home this season and the program has a record of 2-3 against Texas at home.

“We never have problems getting up for teams that are ranked like Texas,” Johnson said.

The Cyclones’ energy at home has benefited them before, and they hope to put that energy to use against the Longhorns.

“We’ve won some big matches here, and it’s so much more fun playing at home,” Hockaday said.

 Sophomore libero Ashley Mass is likely to reach a career 1,000 digs in the match. She would be the quickest libero in school history to reach that milestone, accomplishing the feat in just 59 matches.