Going into a meet hosted by the fifth-ranked team in the nation can be intimidating for visitors.

That is what the ISU swimming and diving team faces as it travels to College Station, Texas, for the Big 12 Championships, starting Wednesday.

The undefeated host Texas A&M Aggies are the favorite coming into the meet. Their main competition for the top three spots, said ISU swimming coach Duane Sorenson, will be 11th-ranked Texas and 24th-ranked Missouri.

Sorenson said that Kansas may figure into the mix at the top, while his Cyclones and Nebraska will be battling it out for fifth place.

“It looks like that on paper,” Sorenson said.

“We’re just looking for peak performances and just outstanding swimming throughout the weekend.”

That is the same order that the teams finished in the season-opening Big 12 Relays, with each team showing that same form most of the season.

The Cyclones (5-4, 0-3 Big 12) are coming off a performance in which they struggled against Kansas. The same thing, however, happened leading into last year’s Big 12 Championships. Iowa State swam arguably its best meet of the year at last year’s championships, breaking seven school records, including two in one event.

Senior swimmer Chelsey Walden said the team wants to swim lifetime best times across the board.

“We would like to break a couple of school records and have individual qualifiers for the NCAA [Championships],” Walden said. “We definitely want to beat Nebraska, too.”

The times from the Big 12 Championships serve as the qualifying mechanism for the national meet, whereas the divers have to qualify at the Zone 5 Diving Qualifications in Austin, Texas, from March 2-4.

Sophomore Haley Haynes is qualified for zones in the 1-meter springboard event and freshman Tien Tran is qualified for the 3-meter springboard event.

Sorenson said the team has a few chances to qualify for nationals.

“We’re hoping to get [senior] Lauren [Breunig] back there in her three events (100 and 200 freestyles, 200 individual medley),” Sorenson said. “Marni Benson also has a good shot in the 100 and 200 breaststrokes.”

Tran said this meet prepares the divers for zones.

“This week gives the divers a chance to get their list off,” she said. “You get to compete in a big-meet performance and kind of get the atmosphere going that zones will have.”

Diving coach Jeff Warrick said the key for his divers to have a good performance at the conference meet is to anticipate the meet.

“The key is just remembering why they do this – because they love the sport,” Warrick said.

“They’re very well prepared and that will keep them loose and relaxed.”

The NCAA Championships are March 8-10 in Minneapolis.