The Panther volleyball team is two matches and six games away from dancing.

The team heads to Eastern Kentucky Saturday for the 2004 O’Reilly Ohio Valley Conference Volleyball Tournament with the winner of the six-team affair earning the conference’s bid to the NCAA Tournament.

The second-seeded Panthers (24-4) face the winner of third-seed Jacksonville State (20-8) and six-seed Morehead State (9-19) in the semifinals Sunday at 1 p.m.

Panther Head Coach Brenda Winkeler said her team is ready for the mental challenges presented by playing a single-elimination tournament.

“The whole season, I can confidently say that we practice harder mentally than any team we’ve played,” Winkeler said.

The mental toughness will help the Panthers react positively to the added pressure instead of causing the team to play timid, sophomore outside hitter Kara Sorenson said.

“We’re going to play like we have nothing to lose,” she said.

Losing is something the Panthers weren’t accustomed to during the OVC season. The only blemish on their 15-1 conference record came at the hands of the tournament’s host and top seed, the Eastern Kentucky Colonels (25-4).

“We want Eastern Kentucky,” Sorenson said.

Regardless of who the Panthers face in the semifinals, they won’t meet a team they’ve faced twice in the tournament, if the Colonels advance as expected.

Winkeler said seeing opponents who her team hasn’t seen too often should benefit the Panthers.

But most of the Panthers haven’t seen the postseason.

Senior outside hitter Erica Gerth, the OVC’s Player of the Year, said the team’s lack of experience in postseason play won’t be a factor, but playing in the postseason is a different experience. Eastern last appeared and won the OVC Tournament in 2001, Gerth’s and senior middle blocker Shanna Ruxer’s freshman year

“I don’t think the rest of the team is going to feel it until they get to the gym,” Gerth said. “Simply, we have to bring our ‘A’ game, or we’ll be going home earlier than we want to.”

But, if the Panthers do play at their best, they may not be headed home. They may be dancing.