JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The UIC Flames picked up two more wins at Swisher Gym Saturday, defeating the Presbyterian Blue Hose, 3-1 (29-27, 25-22, 19-25, 25-21), and the Jacksonville Dolphins, 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-15). With the pair of victories, the 2016 Flames (6-0) have matched the 2000 squad with the second-best start in Division I program history.
 
Graduate transfer Kelsie Groot was named the JAX Classic's most valuable player, while she was joined on the All-Tournament Team by fellow outside hitter Alyssa Ehrhardt and right-side hitter Kyisha Hunt. Both Groot and Ehrhardt finished with 40 kills, an average of 3.64 per set. Groot hit .305, committing only eight attacking errors in 105 attempts in the tournament. In her team's two victories Saturday, the Irvine, Calif., native hit .371 (25k-2e-62a).
 
Ehrhardt averaged 3.36 digs per set and led UIC with five service aces at the JAX Classic. The reigning Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week hit .250 and averaged 3.36 digs per set. Hunt continued to come into her own as she averaged 3.55 kills per set while hitting at a clip of .358 in the tournament. She also added four blocks in the tournament, matching Ali Witt for team-high honors.
 
"As a team, there is no doubt that we played our best volleyball of the season tonight," said UIC head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley. "It is always a challenge to play two matches in one day, but we came in against Jacksonville focused and prepared. I thought we had great energy at the start and it carried us through the match.
 
"As we continue to grow together and fight for each other, the sky is really the limit," said Schumacher-Cawley. "Everyone in our locker room is proud of the way that we've started the year, but we also know that there are things we can all do to improve. We're all excited to continue working hard for each other."
 
UIC 3, Jacksonville 0
 
UIC returned to the floor a mere three and a half hours after their first match of the day and the team turned in arguably its best performance of the season. The Flames made quick work of the Dolphins as they finished off the hosts in 1:17 for their second straight-set win to close out a tournament.
 
The Flames trailed the Dolphins, 13-12, near the midway point of the first set before Hunt buried a feed from Nicole Johnson that began to reverse the team's fortune. Casey Harris and Groot teamed up for a block on the next sequence to gain the lead and the Flames would never again trail in the stanza. Groot slammed home a helper from Johnson to seal the set, 25-22.
 
The second set was a smoot ride for the visiting team as it never trailed en route to a 25-20 triumph. It was tight late, 21-19 in favor of UIC, but back-to-back kills from Groot and Hunt created the necessary separation before the latter finished off the Dolphins, 25-20, to give the Flames a 2-0 lead at the break.
 
The third and final frame saw UIC click on all cylinders. An attacking error on the Flames made it a one-point affair at 8-7, but a quick 4-0 run once again created some distance. The lead later reached nine points after Hunt hammered down another point from Johnson to force a Jacksonville timeout. She scored again out of the break before the tournament MVP, Groot, finished the night with her 12^th kill.
 
Hunt led all players with 15 kills in the nightcap, hitting .379 (15k-4-29a) in the process. Libero Kara Johnson led three players who notched double-digit digs with a team-high 12. The Champaign, Ill., native finished the tournament with 3.91 digs per set for the Flames.
 
UIC setter Nicole Johnson, who ranks among the NCAA leaders in assists, handed out 71 during her team's three matches. Redshirt freshman Macy Geyer made her collegiate debut Friday night against Charlotte and she added 49 helpers during the tournament.
 
UIC 3, Presbyterian 1
 
The Flames began the day with their fifth consecutive victory to open the 2016 campaign, a 3-1 (29-27, 25-22, 19-25, 25-21) triumph over Presbyterian College.
 
Senior outside hitters Alyssa Ehrhardt and Kelsie Groot notched double-doubles against the Blue Hose. Ehrhardt notched a team-high 16 kills to go along with 12 digs, while Groot chipped in with 13 kills and 11 digs.  Kyisha Hunt also played a big role in UIC's offensive attack from her position as a right-side hitter. The junior secured 12 kills with a match-best attacking percentage of .400 (12k-2e-25a). She also added a pair of digs and a solo block.
 
The Flames won a marathon in the first set, 29-27. The team fought off three set points down the stretch before setter Macy Geyer eventually stepped to the service line and delivered one of the team's five aces in the match to seal the first-set win. The second set featured a bit less drama as UIC never trailed in the stanza. The lead reached as many as seven points at 17-10 before a 9-3 Presbyterian run made it 20-19 in favor of the Flames. Hunt had two of her 12 kills down the stretch before Groot buried a final feed from Geyer to clinch a 25-22 win, and a 2-0 advantage in the match.
 
Presbyterian cut into its deficit by winning the third set, 25-19. The Flames led 11-9 at one juncture, but an impressive six-point run by the Blue Hose gave the team the lead for good in the set.
 
Head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley's club rebounded in a big way with a 25-21 victory in the fourth frame to finish the match and move to 5-0.
 
Up Next
 
UIC will be back in the Windy City next weekend for the DePaul Invitational in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood. The Flames will have a chance to match the best start in Division I program history, which came in 1984, when they meet Albany on Friday, Sept. 9 at 4:30 p.m.