CHICAGO – The UIC volleyball team will look to earn its best start in Division I program history this weekend, as they travel across town to the Lincoln Park neighborhood for the DePaul Invitational, Sept. 9-10.
 
The Flames (6-0) will kick off the tournament on Friday, Sept. 9 at 4:30 p.m. CT, against Albany (2-4). UIC will tackle South Florida (6-0) on Saturday at 10 a.m. and will close out the tournament in the evening against host DePaul (3-3) at 7 p.m. in the McGrath-Philips Arena.
 
Early-Season Success:
The Flames are 6-0 for the first time since 2000 after notching their second-consecutive tournament title last weekend at the JAX Classic. This is the first time under the tenure of head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley that the club has earned a 6-0 open. A victory over Albany would match the best start in Division I program history, previously set in 1984.
  
Feeling Great About .408:
As a team, UIC hit .408 on Aug. 27 against New Orleans in the finale of the Redhawks Invitational. The Flames buried an average of 16.7 kills per set against the Privateers, while committing only 2.67 attacking errors per game. The percentage is the sixth-best single-match mark in team history, and the best number since UIC hit .435 against Chicago State on Sept. 8, 1999. Junior opposite Kyisha Hunt (.643) and sophomore middle blocker Ali Witt (.667) each posted individual career highs against UNO. Witt led the Flames in victory with a career-high 11 kills.
 
Horizon Hardware:
UIC has earned its second Horizon League accolade in as many weeks, as Kara Johnson recorded her first-career Horizon League Defensive Player of the Week award.
The Champaign, Ill. native registered a team-high 44 digs at the JAX Classic this past weekend and paced the Flames against all three opponents. In her first season wearing the libero jersey, Johnson currently sits fifth across the Horizon League with 88 total digs and average of 3.83 digs per set. She was a member of the All-Tournament team at the Redhawks Invitational.  

Senior Alyssa Ehrhardt was named the Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week on Aug. 29, following a sensational effort at the Redhawks Invitational. The Algonquin, Ill., native averaged 4.42 kills, 2.25 digs and 0.67 aces per set for the Flames in Cape Girardeau, Mo. Among her weekend highlights include a career-best 27 kills, while hitting .306, in the season opener against LA Tech, and her first double-double of the season behind 16 kills and 15 digs in the nightcap against SEMO. This is Ehrhardt's second weekly honor from the Horizon League (Sept. 8, 2015).
 
More Fantastic Flames:
Graduate transfer Kelsie Groot was named the most valuable player of the JAX Classic this past weekend. Hunt and Ehrhardt were also named to the All-Tournament team for their performances. Both Groot and Ehrhardt closed out the tournament with 40 kills to average 3.64 per set. Groot hit .305 on the weekend, and .371 for the Flames' final two victories on Saturday. Ehrhardt led UIC with five service aces, while also averaging 3.36 digs per set. Hunt averaged 3.55 kills per set and recorded four blocks on the weekend.

Ehrhardt  and Johnson were joined on the Redhawks Invitational All-Tournament Team by Groot. Groot delivered double-doubles in UIC's first two matches, while falling one kill and two digs shy in the sweep over New Orleans in the finale. She averaged 3.58 kills and 2.58 digs during the tournament. Johnson donned the libero jersey for the first time in her collegiate career against Louisiana Tech, and she posted a career-high 25 digs in the match. The Champaign, Ill., native averaged 3.67 digs per set in her first weekend at the position.
 
Where We Rank:
The Flames stand at the top of the Horizon League in several categories at two weeks into the season. Individually, setter Nicole Johnson is tied for the lead in the Horizon League and ranks fourth in the NCAA with 12.32 assists per set heading into this weekend's tournament. Ehrhardt sits atop the Horizon League leaderboard in both kills (93) and kills per set (4.04). Groot and Hunt join Ehrhardt on the kills leaderboard at fourth and eighth, respectively. As a team, UIC leads the League in hitting percentage (.276), Assists (313) and kills (336). The Flames also place fifth in service aces with 28 and digs with 346.
 
 
Congrats, Coach:
UIC head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley reached a milestone with the team's win over New Orleans to close out the Redhawks Invitational. The Chicago native entered the season with 97 career victories and the triumph over the Privateers marked win No. 100. Schumacher-Cawley, who now owns 103 victories, ranks third all-time in victories by a UIC head volleyball coach behind 23-year bench boss Don August, and the first head coach in program history, Mary Kapsalis.
 

About Albany
The Great Danes finished off the Yale Invitational this past weekend with a second-place finish with two victories over Rutgers (3-0) and Iona (3-1). Senior Laini Leindecker and Sophomore Nicole Otero led for Albany, each earning a spot on the All-Tournament team. Leindecker closed out the tournament with 32 kills and 27 digs, while Otero recorded 35 digs and 11 assists. Leindecker leads the Great Danes with 62 kills, averaging 2.95 kills per set and also ranks 47^th in the NCAA in attacks per set (11.14). Otero has brought in seven aces on the season, while also registering 21 assists.
 
About South Florida
USF matches the Flames 6-0 perfect start following their second-consecutive tournament championship this past weekend on its own turf. The Bulls also grabbed the top spot at the Charlotte Invitational on Aug. 26-27. USF is on its best start since 2000, when it finished 28-6 alongside an NCAA Tournament berth. The Great Danes collected victories over Western Carolina (3-0), New Mexico (3-1) and Stetson (3-0) led by co-most valuable player Dakota Hampton. Hampton poured in 50 kills across USF's 10 sets on the weekend, while recording a double-double (17 kills, 10 digs) against Stetson.
 
About DePaul
Host DePaul is fresh off a Bulldog Showdown championship last weekend, after defeating both Portland and Fresno State 3-1. The Blue Demons were crowned champions despite being unable to come up with a win against Portland State Saturday across four sets. Sophomore Brittany Maxwell was donned tournament MVP, while pacing DePaul in kills across all three matches. The right side hitter collected a season-high 17 kills against Fresno State, followed closely by teammate Haley Bueser with 16.
 
Live stats will be available for all three of the Flames' matches at the DePaul Invitational. Live video will be available for the match against DePaul Saturday evening as well. Links for both live stats and live video coverage can be found on the UIC schedule page.