CHICAGO – The UIC volleyball team (4-0) will make its way to Mount Pleasant, Mich. this weekend to compete in the Chippewa Classic. The Flames will take on NDSU on Friday, Sept. 6 at 9 a.m. CT before ending the day with Eastern Illinois at 4 p.m. UIC will wrap up the tournament on Saturday, Sept. 7 at 2:30 p.m. with a match against host Central Michigan.

HOT START
UIC got off to a 4-0 start last weekend, defeating California Baptist (3-0), Cal State Fullerton (3-2), Eastern Washington (3-1) and Idaho (3-2) last weekend at the Idaho Volleyball Classic. It was the second-consecutive year of the Flames winning out their opening weekend, after going 3-0 at their own UIC Invitational back in 2018.

WELCOME BACK
UIC returns 14 of its 17 members from the 2018 squad, including Horizon League Freshman of the Year Kiera James and fellow All-League First Team and All-Freshman Team-member Paola Santiago, who both made a splash in their first seasons as Flames. Also back in the lineup is redshirt junior Manuela Conte, after finishing last year with the second most digs in UIC's single-season history (516) and ranking second in the Horizon League in service aces (0.35 per set). Sophomores Marija Borcic and Lauren Musante both return in the setter position, tallying 999 assists and 330 assists in 2018, respectively.

NEW TO THE SQUAD
The Flames welcomed only one newcomer for the 2019 season, Texas A&M transfer Brookah Palmer. Last season with the Aggies, Palmer appeared in 29 of 30 matches, hitting .181 on the season and averaging 1.70 kills, 1.86 digs and 2.09 points per set. Prior to her time in College Station, Palmer spent a season with the University of Houston, where she led the American Athletic Conference and ranked 40th in the nation with 4.15 kills per set. Palmer also led the AAC in both total points (582) and points per set (4.77) in 2015, earning All-American Athletic Conference First Team honors as well as AVCA All-Southeast Region Honorable Mention. In her first weekend as a Flame, Palmer averaged 3.72 kills per set and recorded her first double-double of the season with 23 kills and 10 digs in the finale against Idaho.

FRESH FACES ON STAFF
UIC welcomed a pair of new assistants to its staff for the 2019 season, adding Lauren Van Orden on staff in March and Katie Weidner in June. Van Orden joins the Flames after spending four years (2014-17) as an assistant with city-foe Loyola, guiding the Ramblers to a 20-win season back in 2015. Van Orden boasts an incredibly successful collegiate career that started with two years at San Diego State and capped off with a 2011 national championship in her senior season at UCLA. During her two years as a Bruin, Van Orden led the team to a 52-15 record, making 61 starts as the team's setter and captain.

Weidner came to Chicago following stints with the Israel Ministry of Culture and Sport as well as the Israel Volleyball Federation. As a player, Weidner started her collegiate career at New Hampshire University, earning a spot on the 2003 America East All-Rookie Team before transferring to Marquette University. With the Golden Eagles, Weidner was a two-time Academic All-Big East Team honoree (2006-07) ranking seventh in career assists (2,308) and second in single-match assists (85).

FLAMES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
UIC's roster boasts four international players, more than any other Horizon League team. Junior Alexandra Drosopoulou hails from Thessaloniki, Greece, sophomore setter Marija Borcic calls Uzice Serbia home, redshirt junior Manuela Conte is from Bologna, Italy, while sophomore Velina Minkova is native to Sofia, Bulgaria.

SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
North Dakota State went 1-2 in its opening weekend at the Toledo Blue & Gold Tournament, sweeping Toledo 3-0 in its first match before falling 3-1 to Loyola and 3-0 to Western Kentucky. Kalli Hegerle represented the Bison on the All-Tournament Team, averaging 4.60 assists, 2.40 digs, 1.60 kills and 0.90 blocks per set on the weekend.

Eastern Illinois hosted its own EIU Panther Invitational this past weekend, and was handed a trio of losses. The Panthers fell 3-0 to Memphis while also dropping a pair of 3-1 decisions to South Dakota State and Drake. Maggie Runge represented EIU on the All-Tournament team, averaging 2.18 kills per set and 0.91 blocks per set on the weekend.

Central Michigan had a perfect 3-0 weekend at the Terrier Classic, defeating Maryland-Eastern Shore 3-1 before sweeping both Saint Peter's University and NJIT. Maddie Whitfield led the squad, averaging 3.00 kills per set, while Megan Kern paced the defense with 4.70 digs per set in the tournament.