The new era of UIC women's soccer will officially begin Thursday night, when the Flames host Central Michigan in the season opener at Flames Field.  Kickoff is at 7 pm, and admission is free.

First year head coach Tom Anagnost has led his team through two exhibition wins – both via shutout.  Along the way, the team's 15 newcomers have quickly gotten up to speed and meshed with the nine returning players.  "Our team has definitely grown and changed for the better" throughout the preseason, Anagnost said.  "We have becoming a harder working, blue collar team that plays for each other.  Our leadership has been solid and developing.  We have great people on the team and the culture is strong.  With all of that, you can do great things."

Setting the Scene

• The match will be the first game of the season for both squads.
• UIC went 4-14-1 a season ago, while Central Michigan turned in a 7-12 campaign.
• Both teams went 2-0 in their preseason contests, each winning once by a 1-0 margin and once by a 2-0 scoreline.

Flames to Watch

• Emily Kavanaugh is the Flames' leading scorer from 2018.  The sophomore had five goals and three assists last season, winning Horizon League All-Freshman and All-League Second Team honors.
• Grace Haines scored UIC's first goal of the preseason.  Kavanaugh added one on a penalty kick, and Autumn Rasmussen accounted for the final goal.
• Lena Kurz totaled seven saves in the two exhibitions.

Quick Strikes

• Early offensive pressure has been UIC's hallmark in the preseason.
• The Flames scored the first goal of each match within the first eight minutes.
• Haines tallied in the eighth minute against Southern Illinois.  Rasmussen scored at 5:03 against Cincinnati.

Scouting the Chippewas

• Central Michigan defeated Horizon League side Detroit Mercy, 1-0, and Illinois, 2-0, in their exhibition matches.
• CMU is debuting a new staff as well, with first-year coach Jeremy Groves set to make his mark on the program.
• The Chippewas' three leading scorers – who accounted for 18 of the team's 27 goals and 13 of 25 assists – from 2018 have graduated.  Marle Bringard and Natalie Belsito, who each scored two goals last fall, are the top returning scorers.

For Openers

• UIC is 1-3-1 all-time in season openers.
• This is the first time that the Flames will play their season opener at home.
• The program has a record of 0-4-1 in home openers.

Igniting a New Era

• Tom Anagnost was named the second head coach in program history on January 7.
• Anagnost has a career record of 81-39-20 over seven years as a head coach at Central Michigan, Miami (FL), and Mississippi State.
• Dustin Downey and Matt Gill are each in their first year as assistant coaches.

Preseason Prognostications

• UIC was picked to finish seventh in the Horizon League preseason poll of the league's head coaches.
• The ranking is one spot higher than the Flames' final standing in 2018.
• Central Michigan is ranked eighth in the MAC preseason poll.