With the football team set to take on Nebraska tomorrow, let us not forget about some other rivalries that will be played out this weekend.

The Penn State field hockey team will square off in two key rivalry matchups this weekend. Today, the team will take on in-state rival Temple (0-3) at 5 p.m. Sunday's game will pit the No. 12 Nittany Lions (2-0) against No. 6 North Carolina (2-2) at noon. Both games will be played at Bigler Field.

The Lions will be looking to increase their winning streak against non-conference teams -- a streak that extends for eight games and dates back to Sept. 9, 2001 with a 3-1 win over Connecticut.

Goalie Annie Zinkavich is expecting big things out of this weekend and hopes home field advantage will help.

"It's two big games and we're going to have a lot of fans and it's going to be that much better," Zinkavich said.

While Temple has failed to win a game in three tries this season, it's not for lack of trying. Temple has taken on three top-10 teams thus far -- No. 4 Louisville, No. 10 Iowa, and UNC. After the Temple Invitational Tournament last weekend, Owls' forward Dannon Mehaffey was named the Atlantic Conference Rookie of the Week for creating two offensive corners and recording four interceptions.

Penn State field hockey coach Char Morett credits Temple with being game-ready, while Zinkavich feels that Temple is a much-improved team from seasons past.

"We've had one game a week and I know we're very anxious to play," Morett said. "I think that's a positive for us."

The Tar Heels' two losses have also been to top-ranked teams. They opened their season with a 2-0 loss to defending National Champion Michigan and also lost 3-2 to Louisville in overtime. The Tar Heels lead the way with sophomore forward Kerry Falgowski, who has notched five goals in four games. UNC currently holds a 14-4-1 edge over Penn State in the series.

Morett is hoping the Lions can play "their game." After two games this season, 5-0 and 2-1 wins over Lafayette and Uconn, respectively, Morett wants the team to build off its defensive strengths. The passing game has been focused on in practice and according to Morett, there has been a very high level of effort in practice over the past week.

While many people, fans and players alike, feel that the Lions should garner higher respect than their No. 12 ranking, Zinkavich feels the lower ranking could help in this weekend's games, especially against UNC.

"I think it's better to come in as the underdog because people aren't expecting you to win," she said.

"It's so much better when you win games like that because . . . you get to build yourself up until you get to the top."