CHICAGO – The UIC women's tennis team (2-3) will continue its homestand by welcoming Northern Illinois (4-6) on Monday, March 5 at 12 p.m. CT at XS Tennis. A win would give the Flames their first back-to-back wins of the dual season.

LAST TIME OUT
In its last appearance on Feb. 22, UIC bested Cardinal Stritch, 6-1, in its first match of a three-game home stint. The Flames swept the Wolves in doubles play for the doubles point, while Georgie Sanders, Melika LeBlanc, Rachel Le Comber, Viktoria Seifert and Stefana Vasic each defeated their opponents in straight sets.

SCOUTING NORTHERN ILLINOIS
The Huskies are riding a two-game losing streak, falling 7-0 to both DePaul (Feb. 25) and Marquette (March 2). Northern Illinois dropped all three doubles matches against Marquette by a score of 6-1, and the Golden Eagles won all six singles matchups in straight sets.

UIC & NIU: A HISTORY
The Flames own a 17-9 record all-time against the Huskies, and UIC was victorious in the most recent meeting between the two teams, defeating NIU 6-1 on March 3, 2017. The Flames grabbed an early 1-0 lead after taking all three doubles matches, and went on to take four straight-set victories in singles play for the victory.

FLAMES FALL FINISH
The Flames competed in three fall tournaments prior to the ITA Regionals: the Cincinnati Invitational, the Wildcat Invite and their own UIC Invitational. The Flames ended fall tournament play with a combined 32-31 record in singles play and 18-17 in doubles, and were highlighted by newcomer Amelia Guevremont's 8-2 showing. Veterans Rachel Le Comber and Georgie Sanders both wrapped up the fall season with a 5-5 record in singles play. On the doubles side, UIC was led by the duo of Viktoria Seifert and Stefana Vasic (4-2) as well as Georgie Sanders and Lejla Colic (5-5).

FLAMES PICKED FIRST IN HL PRESEASON POLL
UIC was picked to finish first in the Horizon League Preseason Poll, receiving five of a total possible nine first-place votes. The Flames finished with a total of 86 points, just ahead of Youngstown State in second with four first-place votes and 84 total points. Cleveland State (63) finished third, Wright State (57), fourth, while Northern Kentucky (53), Detroit Mercy (47), Oakland (46), Milwaukee (27), IUPUI (23), and Green Bay (9) finished fifth through tenth, respectively.

UIC ADDS THREE
This year's roster boasts nine players consisting of three newcomers and six returners. Amelia Guevremont is the only true freshman in the bunch, having arrived in Chicago by way of Verdun, Quebec. Sophomore Lejla Colic joins UIC after finishing her freshman season at Washington State, where she was 13-9 in singles play and 12-8 in doubles. Viktoria Seifert joins the Flames after two years at Seminole State, where she was the Trojans' number one player in both singles and doubles in her sophomore year. Returning to the roster are veterans Rachel Le Comber, Melika LeBlanc, Miranda Rodriguez Diaz de Leon, Georgie Sanders, Stefana Vasic and Bianca Zuzu.