It was Sunday evening, and senior Cheryl Cobbina was out to dinner with her family before they left to head back home after Family Weekend. Everything was quiet until Cobbina got a phone call that made her stand up, yell and gain the attention of everyone else in the TGI Fridays on Erie Boulevard. Cobbina had just learned that Syracuse had made it to the Big East Tournament.
Back on campus, sophomores Kacie MacTavish and Sarah Morton were screaming in their South Campus apartment from the excitement. They ran over to senior Joscie Kaup's apartment to meet up and celebrate with the rest of their teammates. 
Now down from their high of a week ago, the women's volleyball team travels to Milwaukee, Wis., today to face off against first-seeded No. 21 Louisville in the Big East Tournament at 1:30 p.m.
Going into the match, SU (21-12, 8-6) carries a three-match win streak and two were must-wins this past weekend. The fact that Syracuse has already been in the mindset of "win or go home" for the past week and a half should help it keep the pressure at bay while on the court, Cobbina said.
This is the second meeting between the two teams. They last met Sept. 29 in the first week of conference play. The Orange hung around the first two games, losing close matches. In the third game, everything fell apart and SU fell, 30-16.
Syracuse is doing its best to make sure there are no such repeats.
"We've improved a lot since then," MacTavish said. "It was our first [sic] game in the Big East when we played them, so we've improved a lot, and we're coming out to win. We're not going to come out scared or expecting to lose. We're going to do our best to beat them, no matter who's on the other side."
Since their last meeting, the Orange has become better balanced on offense, utilizing the middle hitters more than it did in the beginning of the year, assistant coach Carol LaMarche said. She noted that the team has also become much stronger on defense in all aspects.
Another advantage for Syracuse is since it has faced Louisville (20-5, 13-1) already this season, SU knows the Cardinals' tendencies and habits on the court as well as how to defend against them.
The Orange will need to better conceal their sets, use less tipping and have strong serving to attempt to take the Cardinals out of their offense, LaMarche said. Louisville likes to set the ball to the outside a lot, which LaMarche thinks the team will have an easier time defending against.
"We know what we're up against," Cobbina said. "It's one thing to watch a tape and see what they do, and it's another thing to actually play them. We've actually played them, and we know what works and what to expect."
The Cardinals suffered their first Big East loss of the season this past Sunday against Notre Dame. The fact that the Irish pulled off a win over Louisville in South Bend, Ind., has given SU confidence about its upcoming match.
The team's goal all season long was to make the Big East Tournament after missing out following a terrible 11-25 2006 campaign. Cobbina points to the fact that SU is playing with the same starters as last year to show how much the team has indeed grown over the past year.
Though the team has already reached its goal of making the conference tournament, an upset win over Louisville would be the cherry on top of a drastically improved season.
Just five days ago, the Orange was screaming in restaurants and celebrating for simply making the tournament. Now Syracuse, a certain long shot, has its sights set on shaking up the Big East.
"Nobody expects as much from us because we're playing the No. 1 seed," Cobbina said. "They put us against the No. 1 seed because it's supposed to be an easier game for them, but we're more able to upset and cause surprise."
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