UIC traveled to Youngstown, Ohio, looking for their first Horizon League win of the season.  Instead, the homestanding Penguins (5-10, 1-3 HL) broke into the conference win column by cooling off the Flames (3-13, 0-5 HL) in the second half, dealing them a 70-54 defeat Thursday afternoon.

Terri Bender led UIC with 13 points and had four assists, giving her 423 for her career which moved her into fourth place on the school's all time list.

The Flames had shot over 40% in three straight conference contests, and continued connecting in the first half.  They shot 41.7% in the first 20 minutes and built a lead of as many as four points.  Youngstown State battled back to tie the game at the half, and held UIC to 33.3% after the break, including a third quarter in which the Flames made just two of 11 shots and scored just 5 points.

The Flames fell behind early in the contest thanks to a little fumble-itis.  UIC turned the ball over on three consecutive possessions while Youngstown State built a seven point lead.  Then Bender put a stop to the run with a nice drive through the lane for a layup and followed that with a three pointer.  At the 3:39 mark, UIC trailed 16-12 though both teams were shooting over 60%.

YSU scored on a cutting layup to begin the second quarter, then would not score again for 6:28.  Laura Litchfield provided a spark, connecting on a jump shot on the first possession after she entered the game, then getting a deflection on the defensive end.  The Flames tied the game on a Teodora Zagorac layup off an offensive rebound.  UIC went ahead when Terri Bender found Taylor Toney for a layup, and the pair connected again next time down the floor to put the Flames up 31-27 to complete a 12-0 run.

Youngstown State bounced back to tie the game at halftime with an 8-4 run of their own.  They would build a lead with another run, this one 9-1, late in the third quarter.  A home run pass led to a layup when Kelley Wright got behind the defense, and the Penguins led 45-39.

In the fourth quarter, the Flames closed to within five points when Tylah Lampley (7 points) converted a three point play after making a lean-in jumper.  But Morgan Brunner, who led all scorers with 20 points, made a three pointer.  Minutes later, she would have a three point play of her own to extend the Penguin lead to 14 points.  UIC trimmed the deficit to single digits, but Brunner swished a three to provide a final dagger.

True to form, the Penguins launched a barrage of three pointers.  24 of their 56 field goal attempts came from beyond the arc, and they made 42% of them. Brunner made five of her nine attempts.
Melita Emanuel-Carr and Taylor Toney had nine points each.  Teodora Zagorac had an efficient six point, nine rebound performance.  Brittany Byrd, the Flames' leading scorer in five of their previous seven games, had her streak of double-digit scoring games end at seven, tallying just three points on one-for-10 shooting.

UIC will be back in action Saturday.  They will make the short trip from Youngstown to Cleveland and try again for that first conference win against the Cleveland State Vikings at noon.