After facing two top-25 teams last weekend, the Gophers will face an even bigger challenge this weekend.

For the second time this season, Minnesota will face a top-20 opponent when it travels to Chapel Hill to take on No. 19 North Carolina.

No. 33 Minnesota, which sits on a 7-3 record, will also compete against Citadel at UNC’s home court.

Head coach Geoff Young said he doesn’t look at how North Carolina ranks because the Tar Heels are a top-10 caliber team in the country.

“I think they got to the quarterfinals of the NCAA [championships] last year, and they have everyone back,” Young said. “They are a top, top team, and we are going to have to be at our best to have a chance to win.”

Just last week, the Tar Heels were the No. 8 in the country before falling to No. 10 Texas and No. 1 Oklahoma.

Despite going up against a top opponent, Young said he has not cemented the lineup yet.

“I haven’t looked at the lineups,” Young said. “[But] our lineup is really deep, and I would be surprised if we weren’t competitive in every position. It’s just a matter of if we get enough points.”

One player who could be crucial for the Gophers to pull off the upset is senior Mathieu Froment.

Froment said he’s excited to compete against North Carolina, especially on the road.

“It will be new courts, and we know that the crowd will be big there,” Froment said. “It is always good to play a good team and gain experience, and our goal is to beat them.”

The Gophers have competed on the road in their last three matches, and they dropped the last two to then-No. 23 Vanderbilt and then-No. 25 Harvard.

Froment said he hopes to play better against North Carolina compared to last weekend.

He lost in three sets against Vanderbilt and only won three total games against Harvard.

In the doubles competition, Froment and teammate Jack Hamburg lost twice as well.

“I’m not playing the best right now, but I just need a win to get it going,” Froment said. “For me, my goal is to play better in doubles. We had a couple good weekends, but the last one was not the best with Jack. So we want to get back to where we were in the beginning of the season.”

Last season, the Gophers were 0-3 against top-20 teams.

Despite that, Young said he tries to schedule top-ranked opponents each year.

“Our schedule is filled with really good teams, and it’s a strong schedule,” Young said. “I do that because I think that we have teams that can take advantage of it.”

Against North Carolina this week, Young said it should be a good match.

“I think that we will have chances, and we will be in the match,” Young said. “It’s a great match to play, and it’s a great match to test ourselves to see how much we have.”