Nov. 20, 2009
Box Score
CLEVELAND - The UIC volleyball team bounced back from an opening set loss to take down fourth-seeded Butler, 3-1, in the quarterfinals of the Horizon League Tournament at the Woodling Gym Friday night.
The Flames (16-17) opened up the league tournament with a poor showing in set one, allowing the Bulldogs (21-14) to break a 9-9 tie with a 14-2 run that included nine consecutive points for the 25-13 Butler win.
UIC answered back in set two with eight blocks, holding Butler to a sub .070 attack percentage to tie things up entering the lockerroom. Down 14-11, three consecutive kills from Epiphany Davis, Jessica Dalke and Nicole Allgood would net things up, and a trio of Butler errors would put the Flames ahead for good before taking set two, 25-21.
The third set was an even affair before another string of Bulldog miscues gave the Flames a 16-13 edge, a lead they would not relinquish. Casie Sullivan picked up eight kills and four digs in the go-ahead, 25-20 set victory.
Butler responded in the fourth by holding a point or two advantage throughout the set. UIC staved off four straight Bulldog setpoints, including a decisive kill from Lana Lobdell to tie things at 24. A pair of blocks from the duo of Davis and Allgood would close out the match with a 28-26 deciding set victory.
"I am proud of the way this team fought," said head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley. "They never gave up. Jessica [Dalke] ran the court like she has all season with a lot of fire.
"We will be ready for tomorrow and continue to raise our level of play."
Sullivan led the Flames with an errorless evening, 14 kills and 12 digs, while Dalke led the victorious squad with 41 assists and 20 digs. Allgood, Emily Schaffer and Taylor Szatkowski also tallied double-digit digs on the evening.
The Flames will face the top-seeded Vikings at noon Central in the semifinals for the right to advance to the championship match. Tomorrow's contest will be streamed live on horizonleaguenetwork.tv.
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.
