Sept. 20, 2009
Box Score
CHICAGO- Freshman Kelsey Safranek's career day led the UIC volleyball squad to a 3-1 (25-19, 15-25, 25-16, 25-21) win against Green Bay at the Flames Athletic Center Sunday.
"They pulled together as a team," UIC head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley said. "It's nice to see them pull together and win after putting in all the hard work they have this season. It's great to win at home, and it's nice to start out in conference this way."
The Flames (5-8, 2-0) came out on fire in set one, jumping to a 7-2 early lead on the services of Jessica Dalke and Casie Sullivan. Green Bay (3-9, 0-2) would get as close as two points, but could never take the lead. Senior Lana Lobdell's fourth kill of the set gave UIC the 25-19 win.
The Phoenix came out with more life in set two, pulling away from UIC with a 6-2 run to take an 18-11 lead. The Flames would manage just four more points, with Green Bay taking the 25-15 win.
UIC blanked the Phoenix for the first five points of set three, forcing a Green Bay timeout with the Flames ahead 5-0. UIC would run the score to 8-0 before allowing the Phoenix to score, and ran away with the 25-16 win. Eight kills from Safranek dotted the third set of the match.
"Kelsey has played consistent all weekend," Schumacher-Cawley said. "She has been working hard in practice and it is paying off."
The fourth set proved to be a battle for both teams, with no one taking more than a four-point lead at any time. After being down one or two points for most of the match, UIC took the lead and kept it at 20-19 on a kill from Lobdell. Four straight points by the Flames ran the score to 23-20, and a Phoenix attack error finished the match with a 25-21 score in the final game.
Safranek led the offense with a career-high 17 kills on the afternoon. She added seven block assists to her stellar day, and hit .400 for the match. Sullivan had 11 kills and 15 digs to complete her double-double effort, while Jessica Dalke dished out 40 assists and tallied a team-high 18 digs for a double-double of her own.
"We need to keep working all week in practice and get ready for Youngstown," Schumacher-Cawley said. "We have to be ready to go from the first point."
UIC takes to the road for its next five contests, starting with a match at Youngstown State Saturday. The Flames will then step out of Horizon League play for a Sunday face off at Robert Morris.
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