Playing college hockey means the realization of a childhood dream for many student athletes.
In some cases, the realization of that dream comes with a giant helping of culture shock.
For three members of the Wisconsin women's hockey team, the opportunity to play college hockey came with a price - having to move across the country to play the sport they love.
I just knew that I had to go somewhere up north to play with more competitive girls,"" said UW junior forward Kyla Sanders, a Fort Myers, Fla., native.
To do that, Sanders spent two years at the North American Hockey Academy in Stowe, Vt. She shared Offensive Player of the Year honors her first year at NAHA and won the award again for the 2005-'06 season, tallying 34 goals and 32 assists.
The Floridian knew that staying in her home state was never a realistic option.
""[The sport] is pretty small right now,"" Sanders said. ""When I come out here, people are like, 'oh, you're from Florida.' They don't even know we have ice in Florida.""
On the west coast, Wisconsin sophomore forward Kelly Nash and sophomore defender Olivia Jakiel faced a similar problem.
""I always knew that I couldn't pursue college hockey in California because they don't have any teams out there,"" said Jakiel, a defender from Santa Clarita, Calif. ""I knew that I had to come out here.""
For the Californians, hockey was a co-ed sport.
""We had one girls team from the southern California area, so we had to play in a boys' league all season long,"" Nash said. ""I think it helped a lot of us out.""
Nash, a Bonita, Calif., native who played with Jakiel on the California Selects before committing to Wisconsin, was named her team's Forward of the Year in 2003, 2005 and 2006. She also led the team in points in 2005 on the way to the USA Hockey Girls' U-16 National Championship.
Even after playing in all 41 games during her freshman campaign and making appearances on the Badgers' top line this season, Nash says there is still one aspect of her game that gives away her California roots.
""I think people can tell I played roller hockey before I played ice,"" she said. ""My skating is just not the same as everyone else's. I think it was beneficial for me that I played roller hockey because of the stick-handling and everything, but my skating is a little off.""
Though the sport has taken them far from home, hockey started out as a family affair for all three Badgers.
""I was a tomboy growing up, so I just did whatever my brother was doing,"" Nash said. ""I played all the sports he did. He started playing roller hockey and so did I, and I just stuck with it. It ended up being a good choice, I guess.""
Jakiel, whose brothers Andy and Steve play junior and collegiate hockey, respectively, had similar experiences.
""[My brothers] started playing ice hockey a little bit before I did,"" she said. ""At that age, you just want to follow in your older siblings' footsteps.""
When it came time to commit to a collegiate program, the choice for all three was easy.
""[Wisconsin] was the No. 1 team, so it was hard to say 'no
