Oct. 20, 2009
Box Score
CHICAGO - The UIC volleyball team returned to its winning ways on Tuesday night, defeating cross-town foe Chicago State in straight sets (25-9, 25-16, 25-15) at the Flames Athletic Center.
The Flames (11-13) stifled any offensive output by the Cougars (0-19), limiting CSU to a scant 18 kills in the abbreviated outing.
UIC took hold of the contest from the get-go, going on one of its longest stretches of point production of the season after going on a 12-0 run in the middle of set one. Taylor Szatkowski picked up a trio of service aces and Casie Sullivan picked up four kills in that span, and the Flames coasted to a 25-9 victory.
Set two saw much of the same from both sides. Jessica Dalke dished out 11 of her 33 match assists and freshman Kelsey Safranek slammed four kills to outdistance themselves from the Cougars for a 25-16 outing.
Chicago State kept themselves in set three with an even 10-10 score before UIC utilized a multi-faceted offense as five different Flames piled on kills intermixed with Cougar miscues for the final 25-15 home team sweep.
"I thought we had great team effort tonight," said head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley. "It is always nice to win at home and will be a good start to get us back into conference play this weekend."
Sullivan had a double-digit kill accumulation with 13, and Kate Eldred had a fine outing with a match-high 12 digs. UIC held Chicago State to a paltry -.040 attack percentage, the lowest output by a Flames opponent this season.
UIC now enjoys a small homestand, hosting Youngstown State on Saturday at 2 p.m. This weekend's contest will be broadcast live on the Horizon League Network.
Fans can listen to podcasts featuring exclusive interviews with UIC head coaches, staff and student-athletes in two ways:
1. Download the free UIC Athletics Widget and click on the "UIC Flames Podcasts" link
2. Download podcasts for free on iTunes by searching "UIC Flames." Fans wishing to learn more about affordable and flexible UIC ticket plans are encouraged to call 312-413-UIC1 or visit www.uicflames.com and click on the "Tickets" tab on the Flames home page.
