MILWAUKEE – The UIC volleyball team (7-1, 7-1 HL) got back in the win column on Tuesday afternoon with a 3-1 (25-20, 18-25, 25-21, 25-19) retaliation win over Horizon League foe Milwaukee (4-4, 4-4 HL). The Flames got off to a 1-0 lead after taking set one, but the Panthers fought back, taking set two to bring the match to a 1-1 draw. Sets three and four featured late runs by UIC to help push the Flames over the Panthers and earn the series split.

Set One Highlights

• Milwaukee took an early lead in the first set, 11-5, but a 4-0 run for the Flames put them back within two, 11-9.
• Kills from Becca Oldendorf, Zahria Woodard and Martina Delucchi would later give the Flames a 3-0 run and tie the set at 14, but the Panthers immediately took the next three to take back the lead, 17-14.
• The Flames took four of the next five to tie the set at 18. A Paola Santiago kill and a Milwaukee error gave UIC its first lead of the set, 20-19.
• The Panthers put down a kill to tie it once more at 20, before the Flames rattled off the last five points without a reply from Milwaukee to take the set, 25-20.

Set Two Highlights

• The Flames went toe-to-toe with the Panthers at the start of set two, eventually taking a 15-14 lead at the media timeout.
• Following the break, UIC extended its lead to two, 16-14, but Milwaukee turned the tables, taking the next four for a two-point lead of its own, 18-16.
• The Flames were unable to close the gap, as the Panthers went on to take the set, 25-18.

Set Three Highlights

• UIC utilized a 4-0 run for an early 10-5 lead, but the Panthers would take six of the next seven to catch up to the Flames at the 11-point mark.
• Milwaukee pulled ahead by a pair, 16-14, but the Flames got a kill from Mikala Henderson and an error from the Panthers to bring the set once again to a tie, this time at 16.
• Milwaukee put down a kill, 17-16, which was followed by six-straight points for UIC and a 22-17 lead for the Flames.
• The Panthers pulled back within three, 22-19, but that was as close as they would come as kills from Santiago and Oldendorf would end the set, 25-21, in favor of the Flames.

Set Four Highlights

• A back-and-forth battle in the early stages had the Panthers up by one, 14-13, when the Flames scored five straight to take over the lead, 18-14.
• Milwaukee came back within two after back-to-back kills, 18-16, before Oldendorf chipped in a kill and an ace to restore UIC's four-point lead, 20-16.
• The Panthers were unable to catch up the Flames, as a Panther attack error and a Santiago termination ended the frame with UIC on top, 25-19.

Facts & Figures

• Paola Santiago was once again at the top of the offensive contributions, turning in a career-high 19 kills to lead the Flames. Santiago also added seven digs and a pair of blocks to her career high performance.
• Martina Delucchi turned in her second double-double in a Flames uniform, tallying 11 kills to go with 16 digs. Delucchi also made four blocks for the defense.
• Becca Oldendorf was the third Flame in double digits, finishing with 11 kills while hitting at a .391 (11k-2e-23a) clip. The freshman also added four blocks.
• Zahria Woodard chipped in eight kills to go with a team-high five total blocks.
• Libero Jaclyn Oblena led the team in digs with 21.
• Morgan Kull and Sohila Wafeek split the setting duties, with Kull turning in 24 assists on the day, while Wafeek turned in 22 helpers.
• The Flames finished the day hitting .279 (59k-16e-154a) as a squad, while Milwaukee hit .204 (55k-23e-157a) on the day.
• UIC finished with a slight edge in both digs (69-68) and assists (53-52). The Flames also out blocked the Panthers, 9-5.

Up Next

• The Flames will kick off a four-match homestand next week, as they welcome Oakland (March 1-2) and Green Bay (March 8-9) to Chicago.