CHICAGO – The undefeated UIC volleyball team (6-0, 6-0 HL) will be back in action this week as it makes the short trip north to face Horizon League foe Milwaukee (3-3, 3-3 HL) in a pair of road matches. Both matches will be played inside the Panthers' Klotsche Center, with first serve set at 6 p.m. CT on Monday, Feb. 22 and 12 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 23.

LOOKING BACK
UIC last saw the court Feb. 8-9 at Youngstown State, where it picked up its third-straight series sweep, taking a pair of 3-0 victories from the Penguins on their own turf. The Flames served up a season-high 10 aces and out-blocked the Penguins 8-1 in Monday's (Feb. 8) sweep. UIC carried the forward momentum into Tuesday's (Feb. 9) series finale, hitting .380 as a squad to record the 10th-highest single game attack percentage in the program's history while completing another 3-0 sweep of the Penguins. In all, the Flames have won their last 10-straight sets and have an 18-2 advantage in sets against their opponents on the season so far.

OFFENSIVE PROWESS
UIC's offense stands at one of the best in the nation, ranking sixth in the nation in kills per set, averaging 14.95 terminations per set as a team. UIC also ranks sixth in the nation in assists per set, averaging 13.85 helpers per set as a squad, thanks in large part to setter Morgan Kull, who ranks third in the nation individually with 12.00 assists per set.

UIC's offense also comes in at 10th in the nation in hitting percentage, hitting at a clip of .306 as a team. Freshman Becca Oldendorf leads the way in that category, hitting .414 individually to rank 37th in the nation.

The 2020-21 Flames have already posted two of the top-10 single-game hitting percentages all-time this season, recording the eighth highest single-game attack percentage in program history on Jan. 25 against Purdue Fort Wayne (.400) and the 10th-highest single game attack percentage on Feb. 9 against Youngstown State (.380).

HORIZON LEAGUE ROUNDUP
UIC joins Wright State at the top of the Horizon League standings as the only two teams with a perfect 6-0 record. The Flames' high-powered offense sits atop the conference, ranking first in hitting percentage (.306), assists (13.85 per set) and kills (14.95 per set). UIC also ranks second in the League in service aces, averaging 1.85 per set, while limiting its opposition to a conference-low 0.35 aces per set. The Flames additionally rank second in both opponent hitting percentage (.158), third in digs (16.65 per set), and they also come in at fourth in the League in blocks (1.95 per set).

Individually, Becca Oldendorf's .415 hitting percentage leads the League, while teammates Paola Santiago (.315) and Zahria Woodard (.308) follow in seventh and eighth, respectively. Kull paces the League in assists, dishing out an average of 12.00 helpers per set, and she also comes in at second in the Horizon League in service aces, averaging 0.55 aces per set. In kills, Paola Santiago is the conference's runner-up, averaging 3.80 terminations per set. Santiago also tallies the second-most points in the League, averaging 4.45 points per set.

PAOLA'S POWER
Junior Paola Santiago repeated as Horizon League Player of the Week on Feb. 4, averaging 3.71 kills per set and 2.29 digs per set across UIC's two wins over Robert Morris. The junior also brought in three blocks and a trio of service aces in the two-game series. In Monday's (Feb. 1) 3-1 win, Santiago hauled in her second double-double of the season, leading UIC with 18 kills and 12 digs. On Tuesday (Feb. 2), Santiago contributed eight kills, four digs and a pair of blocks as the Flames silenced the Colonials, 3-0.

Santiago also picked up one of the first Horizon League Volleyball Player of the Week awards of the season on Jan. 28 after a standout performance in UIC's season-opening series against Purdue Fort Wayne. The junior averaged 3.43 kills per set, 3.71 digs per set and 1.00 blocks per set across the two games and recorded her first double-double of the season on Jan. 25 with 15 kills and 10 digs.

BACK IN THE LINEUP
Back in the lineup for the Flames this season is junior Michelle Glover, who led the squad with 265 kills and 145 blocks in 2019 to earn a spot on the Horizon League First Team. Also returning for the Flames this season is senior Alexandria Hicks, who averaged 2.20 kills per set and 0.72 blocks per set for the Flames in 2019.
Junior Paola Santiago will also be returning for the Flames after averaging 2.10 kills per set and 2.35 digs per set with five double-doubles in 2019. On the defensive side, junior Velina Minkova is back in the lineup after serving as the Flames' primary libero in 2019 with a team-high 4.03 digs per set.

NEW ADDITIONS
UIC's roster has 13 new additions, 12 of which are true freshman. Mikala Henderson, Taylor O'Malley, Jaclyn Oblena, Martina Delucchi, Sohila Wafeek, Zahria Woodard, Liza Garrido, Becca Oldendorf, Jackie Yau, Abigail Sunga, Amelia Sunga and America Galvan will all be kicking off their collegiate careers with the Flames while senior Morgan Kull joins UIC after three seasons at Auburn.

INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
The Flames' roster boasts lots of talent from around the world, with five of its players hailing from outside of the United States. Senior Alexandra Drosopoulou is native of Thessaloniki, Greece, while fellow upper classman Velina Minkova hails from Sofia, Bulgaria. Freshmen Martina Delucchi (La Plata) and Liza Garrido (Cordoba) both made their way to Chicago from Argentina, while newcomer Sohila Wafeek calls Cairo, Egypt, home.

LOCAL TALENT
In addition to its international talents, the Flames also have several players on the roster local to Chicago and its surrounding suburbs. Freshman Jackie Yau is a Chicago native, while fellow freshmen Taylor O'Malley (Naperville, Ill.), Zahria Woodard (Oak Park, Ill.), Jaclyn Oblena (Orland Park, Ill.) and Becca Oldendorf (Lockport, Ill.) are all suburban natives. Juniors Michelle Glover (Wheaton, Ill) and Francesca Wagoner (Lisle, Ill.), as well as senior transfer Morgan Kull (St. Charles, Ill.) all hail from the western suburbs.

FAN ATTENDANCE
At this time, UIC will not host fans for home matches at the Flames Athletic Center due to current public health regulations. Flames fans can watch UIC volleyball matches on the ESPN family of networks, as in past years.

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
Milwaukee has split its first six matches of the season after completing a series sweep over Green Bay when it last competed Feb. 8-9. The Panthers come in at third in the Horizon League in assists, averaging 12.19 assists per set as a team. Milwaukee's offense also comes in at fifth in the conference kills, putting down an average of 12.67 terminations per set. The Panthers' Ari Miller checks in at fifth in the League in hitting percentage, hitting at a clip of .350 this season. Miller also paces Milwaukee's offense with 3.10 kills per set, putting her at sixth in the conference. Jess Grabowski handles the digging for the Panthers, averaging 4.14 digs per set to lead the team. The Flames are 24-46 all-time against Milwaukee, falling in both meetings last season. UIC had won six matches prior to 2019.