Oct. 8, 2015
2015 UIC Statistics
2015 Horizon League Statistics 2015 UIC Prospectus
2015 UIC Record Book
CHICAGO -- UIC will continue its five-match homestand this weekend with a pair of conference clashes at the Flames Athletic Center. The Flames will welcome the Green Bay Phoenix on Friday, Oct. 9 at 7 p.m. before hosting the Milwaukee Panthers on Saturday, Oct. 10 at 4 p.m.
In addition to being an important conference match, Friday's tilt against the Phoenix will hold an additional special meaning. The Flames will be hosting their annual Dig Pink match in support of breast cancer awareness. UIC will wear special pink uniforms to commemorate the evening and the first 100 students in attendance will receive a 2015 Dig Pink t-shirt.
The Flames enter the weekend with an 8-9 record and a 2-2 mark in Horizon League play. Green Bay is 11-7 overall and it has won two of its three conference matches. Milwaukee is 5-12 in 2015, but three of those victories have come against league opponents.
It will be the first of two meetings against both squads this season. UIC leads the all-time series against Green Bay, 36-18. The Flames have won seven of the last 10 matches dating back to the 2010 season, including both contests a year ago. The Panthers lead the all-time series against UIC, 42-18. Milwaukee has won four consecutive tilts since the Flames swept both matches in 2012.
UIC Match Notes
LAST TIME OUT
UIC began its five-match homestand on Saturday, Oct. 3 when it entertained defending Horizon League champion Oakland at the Flames Athletic Center. The Flames were unable to muster up enough home-court magic and the Golden Grizzlies hit .326 as a team in a 3-0 (25-17, 26-24, 25-20) victory. UIC was hampered by an inconsistent offensive attack during the course of the match with 34 kills and 18 attacking errors on the afternoon.
UIC received eight kills from both Stephenee Yancy and Alyssa Ehrhardt, while Casey Harris chipped in with six at a clip of .308 (6k-2e-13ta). Yancy also added a team-high four blocks.
DIG PINK
The Flames will host their annual Dig Pink match on Friday, Oct. 9 when they take on the Green Bay Phoenix. UIC will be promoting breast cancer awareness throughout the evening and the team will wear special pink uniforms to commemorate the occasion. In addition, the first 100 UIC students in attendance will receive 2015 Dig Pink t-shirts.
JOHNSON SETTING THE PACE
Sophomore setter Nicole Johnson currently leads the Horizon League and ranks eighth in the NCAA with 11.58 assists per set. Her 764 total assists also rank her eighth in the NCAA heading into the weekend. There have been three performances with 58 assists in the Horizon League this season, and Johnson has turned in two of them by accomplishing the feat on Sept. 15 vs. Illinois State, and again at Northern Kentucky on Sept. 26; she is the only setter to reel off that many helpers in only four sets. (Milwaukee's Kayla Price had 58 assists in a five-set match at Oakland on Sept. 24).
Last season, Johnson was selected the 2014 Horizon League Freshman of the Year after ranking sixth with 11.67 assists per set. She was also an All-Horizon League Team selection. Johnson's 1,365 assists in 2014 ranked 14th nationally, and as the eighth highest in a single-season in program history. She led UIC with 26 service aces and contributed seven of UIC's 22 double-doubles. Johnson recorded 55 or more assists in seven matches. She compiled 227 digs with seven double-digit dig efforts.
UIC SWEEPS WEEKLY HORIZON LEAGUE HONORS TO OPEN LEAGUE PLAY
UIC junior middle blocker Casey Harris was named the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, Sept. 28, while senior middle Stephenee Yancy picked up Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week honors. It is the first time ever that a pair of UIC teammates has swept the weekly awards.
Harris led UIC, and the Horizon League, with 1.38 blocks per set over the opening weekend. In the victory at NKU on Sept. 26, she sent down a season-high seven blocks. This is the first weekly honor of her career.
Yancy averaged a league-best 5.75 kills per set at Wright State and Northern Kentucky, while hitting at a clip of .500 (46k-9e-74ta). The senior matched a season high with 26 kills at NKU and she hit a career-best .629 against the Norse. This is the fifth weekly honor of Yancy's career and the first in 2015.
YANCY KEEPS KILLING IT
Senior middle blocker Stephenee Yancy continues to stand out as one of the top offensive threats in both the Horizon League and the NCAA. The Aroma Park, Ill., native leads the conference and ranks 18th in the country with 4.37 kills per set this season. She also ranks second in the league with a .366 hitting percentage. In four HL matches, Yancy has been even sharper; the senior is averaging 4.93 kills per set at a clip of .390.
Yancy has put down 1,265 kills in three-plus collegiate seasons, including 796 as a UIC Flame. She spent her first two seasons at Western Michigan University, where she netted 469 kills for the Broncos.
RARE EHR
In only her second weekend as a member of the Flames, junior Alyssa Ehrhardt made quite the splash at the UIC Invitational (Sept. 4-5). The Algonquin, Ill., native collected tournament MVP honors after averaging 3.6 kills and 2.5 digs per set in UIC's three wins. The transfer also added four aces, four blocks and a pair of assists while hitting at a clip of .338 on the weekend. On Sept. 8, the Horizon League tabbed Ehrhardt as the Offensive Player of the Week for Aug. 31-Sept. 7. She currently ranks fourth in the Horizon League with 0.35 aces per set.
JOHNSON ON PACE FOR 1,000 KILLS/1,000 DIGS
Junior outside hitter Kara Johnson has recorded 844 kills and 656 digs at UIC. She needs 156 kills and 344 digs over the next two seasons to become the 10th player in program history to record 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs. The last UIC player to join the 1,000 kills/1,000 digs club was Katarina Nedeljikovic in 2008 (1,381k/1,150d).
YANCY STARS WITH USA VOLLEYBALL
Stephenee Yancy made a good impression on her U.S. CNT (Collegiate National Team) Red squad by registering 14 points over two matches in late June. She trained and competed with USA Volleyball in conjunction with the USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships.
Yancy was one of 36 athletes who began training with USA Volleyball in New Orleans. The CNT program was considered a second tryout for the U.S. Women's National Team.
POWELL POWERS UIC DEFENSE
Purdue transfer Bridget Powell (5-foot-6 defensive specialist) was also added to the roster in the offseason. Powell was a nationally-ranked libero at Mother McAuley High School. She appeared in six matches in 2013 at Purdue and made good on 98 percent of her serve reception chances. She saw action in the Boilermakers' NCAA First Round match against Central Arkansas. At UIC, she's registered a team-high 231 digs and ranks eighth in the Horizon League with 3.50 per set entering the weekend. Against Abilene Christian on Sept. 19, Powell dug out a career-best 20 attacks.
FIVE FRESHMEN JOIN THE FLAMES
Seventh-year head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley brought in five freshmen in Carla Salvato (5-foot-5 libero), Haley Sullivan (5-foot-3 libero), Ali Witt (6-foot-0 middle blocker), Macy Geyer (5-foot-11 setter) and Morgan Mereday (6-foot-0 outside hitter). Four of the five -- Salvato, Sullivan, Witt and Mereday -- have seen on-court action already this season.
Salvato was an All-conference pick at St. Ignatius College Prep and collected 600 digs. Sullivan was a three-year starter at Lemont High School and compiled 924 digs. Witt was a two-year starter at Prairie Ridge High School and a Sun-Times' Preseason Top 50 selection.
Geyer was a four-year starter for Hononegah Community and a three-time All-NIC-10 selection. Mereday was selected second-team All-State in 2014 and put down 263 kills at Hunterdon Central.
COACH CLOSES IN ON MILESTONE
UIC head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley is closing in on a milestone in her seventh season at the helm. She owns 93 career victories entering the Butler All-American Classic and is seeking to become only the third head coach in program history to reach the century mark. Don August, who led the Flames from 1981-2003 is the program's all-time leader in victories with 421, while Mary Kapsalis is second with 132.
SCOUTING THE PHOENIX
After winning nine of its first 12 matches, Green Bay has dropped four the last six contests entering the weekend. The Phoenix began Horizon League play with a 3-1 victory at Youngstown State on Sept. 24 and they swept Wright State at home last time out on Oct. 3.
Green Bay boasts one of the stingiest defenses in the conference. The Phoenix lead the HL in digs with 17.48 per set and they rank third in blocks with 1.98 per frame. Opponents are hitting .202 against Green Bay this season, though that number has jumped to .221 (seventh) in conference matches. Jillian Bauer leads the league individually, and ranks ninth nationally, with 5.45 digs per set, while Lydia DeWeese ranks second among all players with 1.08 blocks per set.
Offensively, the Phoenix has five different players who average at least 2.00 kills per set. DeWeese leads the way with 2.78 kills per set, and she leads the Horizon League with a hitting percentage of .378. As a team, Green Bay is hitting .200 overall this fall and .219 in Horizon League play with 13.67 kills per set.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
Milwaukee opened the season with back-to-back victories before falling short in nine consecutive contests. Since Horizon League play began on Sept. 24, however, the Panthers have won three of their last five matches. Returning home last weekend for the first time since Aug. 29, UWM defeated both Wright State (3-2) and Northern Kentucky (3-0).
Milwaukee's offensive attack is led by senior Maggie Dunbar, who ranks eighth in the Horizon League with 3.03 kills per set. Junior Kaisa Mattson has stepped up in conference matches as she averages a team-best 3.05 kills per set.
Junior libero Myanna Ruiz currently ranks second in the conference, and 18th nationally, with 5.19 digs per set this season.
