Unbeaten Bearcats on deck

The women's soccer team takes to the road today to compete against No. 25 Cincinnati in their third game tonight at Meyer's Field. The Hoosiers are looking to build on the momentum they gained Sunday after beating Missouri 2-1 in double overtime at the Nike Tiger Invitational. The Hoosiers defeated Missouri after falling to Kentucky 3-1.\nSenior midfielder Kara Bryan stepped up and scored the winning goal in the Missouri game during the 107th minute of play. Bryan, a co-captain with senior Kristen Sprunger and junior Emily Hotz, is enjoying her leadership role. \n"I want to make an impact," Bryan said. "(The victory) gives us some motivation. We should have won both games." \nJunior forward Shelly Gruszka also had a standout performance at the Nike Tiger Invitational recording a goal and two assists. Gruszka, Bryan and sophomore midfielder Kim Grodek were named to the All-Tournament team. \n"We proved ourselves over the weekend," Gruszka said. "We're ready to jump into the season right away." \nThe Hoosiers have a tough task ahead of them in their third straight road game of the season. Cincinnati is 2-0 and most recently beat No. 12 Florida at home. They return seven starters from last year's team, which had the most successful season in school history. The Bearcats advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA Tournament and went 20-4-0 on the season. \nGruszka said she is not intimidated by Cincinnati's success and thinks their ranking provides an extra incentive for the team. \n"We want to show that we can get into that top 25," Gruszka said.\nCincinnati's potent offensive attack scored five goals in their first two games. Senior forward Amy Simonson was named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week for her efforts and may pose a problem for the IU defense. \nCoach Mick Lyon said he is not worried. \n"We're solid," Lyon said. "We've got good team shape defensively."\nThe defense relies on leadership from junior Erin Hesselbach and senior Dana Philp and will rotate in a few freshmen like Ryan Hanley.\n"We're well organized, and we've got some variety in our defense," Lyon said. \nThe Hoosiers may have trouble scoring against a defense that was one of the best in the nation last year. The only goal Cincinnati has given up this season was against No.12 Florida. \n"They're difficult to score a lot of goals on," Lyon said. \nCincinnati's defense is not the only thing the Hoosiers will have to get used to. Meyer's Field will pose problems for the Hoosiers, who usually do not play on artificial turf. Senior Jenny Mann said the team will alter their style of play due to faster ball movement on the artificial turf. \nIU gave Cincinnati its first loss of the season last year, and hope to do the same this season. \n"We're going to find a way to win," Bryan said. "We've been working really hard, and we keep getting better. We're really excited."\nSenior forward Jenny Mann gave a similar assessment. \n"We should definitely win but it will be a tough game. We just need to work together," Mann said.