Any competitor planning on returning to action, only to be sidelined for over five months due to the pandemic, will more than welcome the chance to play again.

For the UIC women's soccer team and interim head coach Dustin Downey, things are no different.

"More than anything, I'm excited for them to be on the field and play someone other than ourselves," Downey said as the team prepared for its long-awaited opener against Oakland on Wednesday.  "The first thing we'll try to accomplish is maintaining the competitiveness, the identity, and culture of our program from last year to this year."

Wednesday's match will be the first time UIC takes the field since the 2019 Horizon League championship match, having had their originally scheduled opener cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols within the Northern Kentucky program.  Though the Flames fell short of capturing the conference title, the season was full of breakout performances and program records. 

"Every game we play will be tough," Downey continued, noting the depth of the conference as well as the fact that the schedule will consist exclusively of conference opponents.  "It's really hard to be consistently good. We just have to keep reminding ourselves of the high standards to compete day in and day out and carry that into games. Regardless of the opponent, and whether you're healthy or not, anyone we put in the game has to be ready to play because every opponent wants to beat you.  Teams will play their best against us.

"Our program instilled that mentality last year, the need and drive to compete every day in training, and hopefully that will carry over into games."

Four seniors and graduate students, among eleven returning players, will help maintain the standards that led to a 12-6-1 record in 2019.  Reigning Horizon League Goalkeeper of the Year Lena Kurz returns for her second season after posting 10 shutouts a season ago.  Keri Birkenhead and Cassidy Privett each had two goals and one assist in the 2019 campaign.  Janai Cedeno started every match, was second on the team in minutes played, and helped anchor a defense that finished in the top 20 nationally in four categories.

Junior Megan Bowman had nine points last season.  Jackie Santibanez and Grace Haines were both Horizon League All-Freshman team selections.  All three have been full-time starters since arriving on campus and will be counted on to be leaders on the team.

Fourteen newcomers have joined the team since last spring.  With extra time to get up to speed, Downey believes they will be more prepared than typical freshmen.  "Missing the fall season and only being able to train is a blessing in disguise with the young kids.  They've had four to five months to prepare.  They've been able to be around the veterans, adapt to college, adapt to the world.  Having the fall end up the way it did helps the younger players."

UIC's 13-member freshman class includes two goalkeepers, three forwards, five midfielders, and three defenders.  The newcomers come from coast to coast, spanning from New Jersey and Connecticut, through the Midwest to Ohio and Minnesota, through Florida and Texas, to California.  Two freshman come from overseas (Germany and Switzerland).  In addition, UIC added one senior transfer, Savannah Jackson.  She played three seasons at Johnson & Wales (NAIA) before the school shuttered their women's soccer program.  Jackson was an All-American and an Academic All-American and was the nation's top goal scorer as a junior.

On the sidelines, Downey will have continuity from last season in the person of Andrew Percic.  Percic worked primarily with UIC's goalkeepers as a volunteer assistant coach in 2019, and is a full-time assistant coach this year.  Jack Curtin joined the staff in the fall.  He coached at Liverpool FC and Everton FC in England before gaining experience stateside with Marquette Soccer Academy and Wizard FC in suburban Oak Brook.

"Andrew and Jack are both doing a great job," Downey said.  "We haven't had to make a lot of adjustments; we've been able to keep the same standards.  As coaches we're trying to be as detailed as possible, create a professional environment, represent the university and the women's soccer program the best we can."

Wednesday's match kicks off a demanding schedule that calls for nine matches in less than nine weeks.  To return to the Horizon League tournament, which will include only the top four teams, Downey and the Flames know that consistent attention to detail will be necessary.  "They're all important, but more than anything were excited to play.  No matter who, let's just play a game, let's have some fun and get back to what we've been doing our whole lives."

Kickoff from inside the Grizz Dome is scheduled for 1:30 pm Central Wednesday.

OPENING KICK

• UIC will open its 2020-21 campaign against Oakland.
• The Flames are coming off their first-ever berth in the Horizon League championship match.
• UIC has never won a road match against Oakland (0-3).

LAST MEETING

• The Flames won their fifth straight match to end the regular season, blanking Oakland 2-0 on November 1, 2019.
• Megan Bowman scored a goal.
• Lena Kurz made a career high 10 saves, including several highlight reel-worthy stops.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GRIZZLIES

• Oakland topped Youngstown State, 1-0, in their first match.
• Macey Wierenga and Jackie Reilly each scored. Carmela Barro had two assists.
• Oakland advanced to the Horizon League semifinals last season.

 DOING IT WITH DEFENSE

• UIC had the second stingiest defense in the Horizon League. The Flames allowed 10 goals during the 2019 regular season, just behind first place Milwaukee's eight.
• UIC was also second by allowing 0.56 goals per game (Milwaukee had 0.53).
• The Flames' overall save percentage, .867, was second in the conference.
• With 12 shutouts, UIC ranked first in the conference.