Box Score Oct. 24, 2015 Box Score
CHICAGO -- UIC outlasted visiting Wright State in a nail-biting fifth set Saturday to knock off the Raiders, 3-2 (25-18, 27-25, 20-25, 17-25, 19-17), at the Flames Athletic Center. The contest went back and forth all day as it featured 41 tie scores and 12 lead changes.
Neither team was able to get a great deal of separation through the early portions of the decisive frame. The Raiders were ahead 8-7 when the teams changed sides, but a solo block, followed by a kill from Stephenee Yancy put the home squad ahead, 9-8. The two sides were never separated by more than two points and it was the Flames that had the first crack at ending the match with a 14-13 lead. They failed to capitalize and later WSU had a chance with a 16-15 lead after an ace by Rachel Kremer.
UIC used its final timeout and scored two unanswered points to go up 17-16, but a missed serve on the next sequence kept hope alive for the visitors. With the score knotted at 17 Yancy buried her match-high 24th kill before teaming up with Nicole Johnson to earn the match point for the Flames.
"It was another tough Horizon League battle like we've seen night after night in this conference," said UIC head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley. "We put ourselves in a good position by winning those first two sets, but credit Wright State for continuing to push us to play our very best all night. They battled and forced the fifth set, but I am proud of the way our team stayed positive and made key plays at the end."
Earlier in the day UIC came out firing in the first set Saturday afternoon by hitting .433 as a squad with 15 kills and only two errors. The Flames raced out to an early 13-6 lead after a kill by senior middle Yancy that prompted Wright State to use a timeout. After the break WSU sliced the deficit to three with four unanswered points, but it would never come closer as UIC stormed its way to a 25-18 first-set victory.
Yancy finished the frame with seven kills and she led a group of seven players who terminated at least one ball in the first set. The Aroma Park, Ill., native hit .462 to lead the charge for the home team.
Compared to the first set which had only one tie score and one lead change, the second stanza played out much differently. It featured 14 tie scores, but only two lead changes as the Flames worked their way to a 27-25 triumph.
Wright State led 4-3 and 6-5 early on, but after Alyssa Ehrhardt scored to even to the ledger at 6-6, UIC never trailed again. It was neck-and-neck the whole way through when freshman Morgan Mereday picked up her third kill of the set to give the Flames a 24-23 advantage. Wright State scored before Mereday gave the Flames a 25-24 edge. It was tied at 25-25 when a Raider attack sailed left of the court to put the Flames up one before Anouska Best finished the frame with her only kill of the set to help UIC win, 27-25.
Ehrhardt picked up six kills in the second set, while Casey Harris chipped in with four of her own. Eight different players scored a kill in the second, with four notching at least three apiece.
The Raiders staged a late comeback to win the third set, 25-20. UIC led 19-14 in the latter stages, but Wright State was able to score 10 unanswered points to go ahead 24-19. A solo block by Kyisha Hunt kept the game going for the Flames, but the home team served the ball into net to hand the visitors the victory.
After hitting .294 through the first two games, the Flames hit a slight offensive lull in the third set. UIC collected 14 kills, but committed seven miscues as it hit .159 in the frame. Wright State had six attacking errors of their own with 13 kills, but it was aided by three blocks and a trio of missed serves from the Flames.
The fourth set featured brief surges by both sides with the Flames grabbing a one-point lead after an ace was served by Ehrhardt, her second of the day. After a WSU timeout, it scored the next four points to grab a lead it would not relinquish. The offensive struggle continued for the home team and the Raiders worked their way to a 25-17 victory to even the match at two sets apiece and force the decisive fifth frame.
One day after eclipsing 70 digs as a team for the third time this season, the Flames shattered that mark by registering 88 against the Raiders. Senior defensive specialist Tracy Friel was instrumental in upping that number as she tallied a career-high 26 in the victory. UIC libero Bridget Powell also set a career high with 22. Ehrhardt added 12 as she notched her team-best ninth double-double of the season with 13 kills. She also finished with a pair of aces.
UIC also collected 14 blocks Saturday, the highest total of the season in that category as well. Yancy had seven, Harris had six and Best had four to lead the effort against Wright State. It marked the sixth time this season that the Flames posted double-digit rejections.
Yancy led all players with 23 kills Saturday. The senior has contributed 20 kills-or-more a remarkable 10 times this season and seven of those efforts have come in Horizon League play. She averaged 5.33 kills per set in two matches this weekend alone. Yancy is averaging 4.97 kills per set in Horizon League play this fall.
The Flames will conclude its three-match homestand on Tuesday, Oct. 27 with a visit from the Valparaiso Crusaders at 7 p.m. The first 150 UIC students in attendance will receive a Flames Volleyball blender bottle.
