Familiar Face

The more things change, the more they just stay the same. Last season, junior Kara Bryan scored 23 points for Butler, en route to becoming the Midwestern Collegiate Conference's player of the year.\nNow Butler is a thing of the past for Bryan, but she might hardly realize it. After transferring to IU in the spring, Bryan opened up the season this fall with two games at Kuntz stadium -- Butler's home field. Not to mention the fact that tonight's game at Kuntz is against Bryan's old team.\nFor her part, Bryan doesn't regret the fact she's had to return to her old stomping grounds one bit.\n"I love Indy and I like Kuntz Field. Plus, it was nice to see all my friends and family," Bryan said after the Hoosiers opened their season with a 1-0 victory over Cincinnati in Indianapolis.\nAfter Bryan wrapped up last season as a Bulldog, the thought crossed her mind that she wanted to make a move to a school with a higher level of competition. Combine that with the fact that she wanted to move out of Indianapolis -- where she had lived her entire life -- and Indiana became a perfect fit for the junior midfielder.\n"There were quite a few factors. One being I wanted to get a little bit further away from home. Two, I wanted to play in the Big Ten. It's a little bit more physical, and the speed of play and the competition they have," she said.\nAnother factor that weighed on Bryan's decision to come to Bloomington was that both her parents are IU graduates.\n"She was looking to play in the Big Ten and step up to better competition. She has aspirations to play at a higher level," Kara's dad, Galinton Bryan, said. "Both of her parents graduated from IU, so it was good for us to see her come down."\nThe decision to leave Butler and come to IU was not one Kara made lightly, but in the end she had been pleased with her decision.\n"She had made a list of pros and cons and talked to people and it was a very difficult decision for her to make. It was totally initiated by her," Kara's mother, Alice Bryan, said. "We just supported her process, and IU was a school she had played against and liked the level of play and felt she could fit in and contribute."\nNow that she's a Hoosier, her new coaches and teammates have been more than happy to have Kara on their side.\n"She brings a lot of sophistication to the game. She's very good with the ball," coach Joe Kelley said. "She compliments and fits in very well with both Kelly (Kram) and Emily (Hotz) in the midfield. And she brings a certain level of confidence. I don't think you've seen nearly what she can offer."\n"Kara's been a great addition. She gives us so many scoring chances. In practice, I know as soon as she gets the ball, we all turn around and look for Kara's feet, because she'll make it happen," sophomore halfback Erin Hesselbach added.\nAlthough Kara did play against the Bulldogs in the spring, tonight's game will be her first regular season competition against her old team, and emotions are high heading into the contest.\n"It's going to be a big emotional thing for me. I know a lot of girls on the team, obviously, and I still talk to a few of them," Bryan said. "I respect their team a lot and we have to go in there like any other game. They're going to come out ready to play. So we can't take them lightly at all"