CHICAGO – The UIC volleyball team (17-10, 8-6 HL) will wrap up the regular season this weekend with a road trip to face Horizon League top contenders Oakland (15-11, 10-4 HL) and IUPUI (15-12, 11-3 HL). The Flames will contend with the Golden Grizzlies on Friday, Nov. 10 at 2 p.m. CT before battling with the Jags on Saturday, Nov. 11 at 3 p.m.

LOOKING BACK
The Flames went 1-1 in their final weekend at home this past weekend, defeating Wright State on Friday (Nov. 3) by a score of 3-1 before taking a tough 3-0 loss to Northern Kentucky on Saturday (Nov. 4). Friday's win confirmed the Flames' first Horizon League Championship berth since 2014, while also giving UIC its highest conference win total since 2012.

WHERE WE RANK
Heading into the final week of the regular season, the Flames are fourth overall in the Horizon League standings for the second-straight week. As a team, UIC is fourth in both kills (13.31 per set) and assists (12.70 per set), while holding the final spot in the top five in hitting percentage (.206). The Flames are second in the League in service aces, averaging 1.32 per set, and they are also sixth in digs with an average of 15.86 per set.

NEW FACES
The UIC roster boasts seven newcomers, all of which are freshmen. The group includes libero Andrea Aviles, outside hitters Alexandra Drosopoulou, Brecken Roe, Kiera James and Manuela Conte, opposite Alexandria Hicks and setter Kaliegh Skopal. Conte is a redshirt freshman after attending Oklahoma in 2016-17, however she did not appear in a match for the Sooners, retaining four seasons of eligibility. Six of the seven newcomers have appeared in a match this season with James as the lone exception.

SETTING FOR SUCCESS
Utilizing two primary setters, UIC ranks fourth in the Horizon League with 12.70 assists per set this season. The two Flames who spread the ball around, true freshman Kaliegh Skopal and fifth-year senior Nicole Johnson, each rank in the top 10 in the conference in assists. Johnson is eighth with 6.56 assists per set entering the weekend, while Skopal follows in ninth with 5.41. Johnson currently ranks second on the Flames' all-time career assists list, while also ranking sixth in the nation in active career assists, tabbing 4,578 career assists during her time in a Flames jersey. The senior is 62 assists shy from breaking the record of 4,640 set by former Flame Katie Kozak.

INGRAM IS IN
UIC head coach Justin Ingram is in his first season at the helm for the Flames. He arrived in Chicago following a very successful five-year stint at Southern Illinois in which he guided the Salukis to 101 victories and the program's first NCAA Tournament bid in 2015. Ingram, the seventh head coach in program history, is a two-time conference Coach of the Year after capturing the award in 2015 at SIU and 2011 at Arkansas State. He graduated from Iowa State in 1995 and received a master's degree from Cal Poly in 1998.
  
CONTE'S CONNECTIONS
Manuela Conte, of Bologna, Italy, has a deep family history in volleyball. Her father, Hugo, is a member of the International Volleyball Hall of Fame after he appeared in the Olympic Games three times for his native Argentina. Hugo was a member of the 1984, 1988 and 2000 contingents and he helped the country capture a bronze medal in volleyball in 1988. Conte's brother, Facundo, competed for Team Argentina at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janiero and he also plays professionally in China.

Conte ranks second on the Flames and ninth in the Horizon League with 3.80 digs per set through 99 sets of action. She also leads UIC with 30 service aces this season, ranking her fifth in the conference with a 0.30 per set average. The freshman also leads the Flames with eight double-doubles this season, including her most recent double-digit kill and double-digit dig performance on Friday (Nov. 3) against Wright State.

HUNTING SEASON
Kyisha Hunt has been UIC's most prolific attacker this season. The Kankakee, Ill., native averaged 4.00 kills per set to lead all scoring for the Flames last weekend against Wright State and Northern Kentucky. The senior leads the squad with 3.74 kills per set, which ranks third in the Horizon League, and has recorded 20 plus kill efforts on five different occasions this season. Nationally, the senior ranks 33rd in kills with a total of 404 and 49th in points, accumulating 436.5 points this season. Hunt is also tied for second in hitting percentage on the Flames, as she's converted at a clip of .255. Hunt was crowned most valuable player at the CEFCU Classic and also represented the Flames on the Cougar Invitational All-Tournament team earlier this season.

INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
UIC's 2017 roster features four international standouts. Manuela Conte and junior Gaia Gbola are from Italy, coming from Bologna and Ravenna, respectively. Alexandra Drosopulou came to Chicago by way of Thessaloniki, Greece. Andrea Aviles' hometown is San Juan, Puerto Rico.

CLOSER TO HOME
Carla Salvato was named Horizon League Player of the week on Sept. 11 following a stellar performance at the CEFCU Classic. The junior registered a career-high 31 digs on Sept. 8 against Bradley, which was only the 15^th time in program history that a UIC player recorded 30 plus digs in a mtch. Salvato dug out 10 in the sweep of Murray State (Sept. 9), and closed out the CEFCU Classic with a match-high 28 digs in the finale against Bradley on Sept. 9. The libero earned a spot on the CEFCU Classic's All-Tournament team, averaging 5.75 digs per set in the tournament, and sits seventh in the Horizon League with 4.23 digs per set this season. Salvato is not just one of the Flames' Chicago natives, but she attended high school right down the street from UIC's urban campus. Salvato attended nearby Saint Ignatius College Prep, which is just west of the Flames Athletic Center. 
 
HAMPTON'S HEROES
Two UIC standouts, junior Alit Witt and redshirt freshman Manuela Conte, were named to the Hampton Inn Invitational All-Tournament Team. Witt averaged 2.42 kills per set while hitting a team-best .323 from her post in the middle. She also added nine blocks in three matches. Perhaps her biggest block of the weekend came as UIC mounted a furious third-set rally in the finale against Duquesne. The Flames trailed the game 17-12 at one point, but led 26-25 when Witt and teammate Kyisha Hunt got together to stuff an attack and complete the sweep.
 
Conte did a bit of everything in what was her first taste of collegiate competition, tallying 4.83 digs per set at the tournament. The Italian dug out a match-high 27 attacks in the season-opening win over Bowling Green and followed that up with 19 more against Xavier in a four-set match. She also finished the Hampton Inn Invitational with 19 kills, four aces, four assists and three blocks.
 
SCOUTING OAKLAND
Oakland gained sole ownership of second place in the Conference, after defeating IUPUI 3-2 last night. The Golden Grizzlies have good strength up at the net, controlling the top spot in the Horizon League in blocks with a 2.72 average. Oakland is also second in the conference in hitting percentage, converting at a clip of .233 as a team. In kills, the Golden Grizzlies sit one spot beneath the Flames in fifth with an average of 13.21 per set. Oakland's offensive front is paced by senior Darien Bandel, who is first in the League with a 4.34 per set average. Redshirt junior Krysteena Davis leads the Golden Grizzlies as well as the League in blocks, averaging 1.42 per set. Oakland defeated the Flames 3-0 last month at the Flames Athletic Center on Oct.13.

SCOUTING IUPUI
IUPUI slipped to third overall in the Horizon League standings after last night's 3-2 loss at Oakland. Despite the setback, the Jags have proved themselves to be a strong defensive team, owning second in the League in both blocks (2.42 per set) and digs (16.98 per set). Offensively, IUPUI is eighth in the conference in kills with a 12.21 per set average, while ranking sixth in hitting percentage just below the Flames with a .205 clip as a team. Senior Kori Waelbroeck leads the Jags' offense, averaging 3.79 kills per set to rank second in the League. Junior Abby Boatman is also second in the conference, in blocks, owning a 1.15 blocks per set average up at the net. The Flames were well matched with IUPUI in the teams' first meeting this season on Oct. 14, but the Jags ended up on top, 3-2.  

LOOKING AHEAD
The Flames will await the results in this last weekend of play to determine which seed they will receive in the Horizon League Championship. The tournament kicks off with two quarterfinal matches on Friday, Nov. 17, followed by the semifinals on Saturday, Nov. 18, with the Championship match slated for Sunday, Nov. 18.