Ball State heads to South Bend with one final chance to upset a team in the upper half of the rankings.
The No. 62 Cardinals (16-7) will face No. 33 Notre Dame (15-6) in the Irish's final home match.
"I think that it's just important to maintain a solid level of play," coach Bill Richards said. "Just get in each match and give ourselves a chance to get the job done."
The Cardinals have not lost to a state rival this year, but they also do not have a road win against a ranked team.
"The other thing you have to remember -- it is on the road," Richards said. "You always have to play a little bit better on the road than at home. We're not just going to show up; we're going to play hard -- play to win"
The Cardinals will once again look to No. 25 Matt Baccarani and Patrick Thompson for leadership in doubles. While the standard singles lineup of Baccarani, Matt Laramore, Tony Epkey, Paul Newman, Thompson and Klint Knable will remain, though positions may be changed.
"Epkey's kind of been struggling lately," Richards said. "The same six guys will play, but it is possible we could make small adjustments. We've invested quite a bit in those guys, so there won't be a change in who is playing, just some adjustments. Still going to think about that, though."
As with Wednesday's loss against Louisville, Richards feels the Cardinals must have their best match of the season to pull off the win.
"No question. I think that we've played well all year," he said. "We've played better in some matches than others. Still, it will take our best match of the year to beat Notre Dame at home."
Richards added that his team will have to be mentally ready to face the Irish.
"A lot will have to do with our mindset," Richards said. "Year in, year out, match-for-match, they've been a better team than us. So we need to go up there with sense of purpose, committed to getting the job done, not just playing a match. If we just go up there just to play a good team and put our time in, we'll get killed."
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