CHICAGO – The UIC volleyball team (11-2, 11-1 HL) will travel to Indianapolis, Ind. to take on IUPUI (0-10, 0-10 HL) in their final matches of the regular season. The Flames and Jags will square off in a pair of matches on Monday, March 22, with the first match set to begin at 2 p.m. CT and the finale set to begin at 6 p.m.

The Flames have the opportunity to set a new conference win record for the program on Monday, as UIC's 11 conference wins are the most since joining the Horizon League and are tied for the most league wins in program history. The Flames also won 11 conference matches in 1993 as members of the Mid-Continent Conference.

LOOKING BACK
UIC took a brief break from Horizon League action, taking on Big East-foe Xavier on Monday (March 15). The Flames cruised to a 25-15 win in set one but were unable to hold off the Musketeers in the sets that followed, falling by slim margins in the final three sets to take just their second loss of the season. Paola Santiago turned in her sixth double-double of the season in the loss, tallying a team-high 13 kills to go with 14 digs. 

OFFENSIVE PROWESS
UIC's offense stands at one of the best in the nation, ranking 19th in the nation in kills per set, averaging 14.27 terminations per set as a team. UIC also ranks 16th in the nation in assists per set, averaging 13.29 helpers per set as a squad and 52nd in the nation in hitting percentage, hitting at a clip of .244 as a team.

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's 11-1 record in Horizon League play puts them at second in the conference, just one game behind Wright State. The Flames' offense sits at the top of the League, ranking second in hitting percentage (.244), assists (13.29 per set) and kills (14.27 per set). UIC also ranks fourth in the League in service aces, averaging 1.60 per set, while limiting its opposition to a conference-low 0.73 aces per set. On the defensive side, UIC ranks fourth in both opponent hitting percentage (.169) and digs (17.38 per set).

Individually, Becca Oldendorf ranks third in hitting percentage, hitting at a clip of .326. Alexandria Hicks follows in ninth, hitting .281 on the season so far. Kull comes in at third in the League in assists, dishing out an average of 9.80 helpers per set, and she also comes in at third in the Horizon League in service aces, averaging 0.45 aces per set. In kills, Paola Santiago ranks fourth, averaging 3.50 terminations per set. Santiago also tallies the fifth-most points in the League, contributing an average of 3.96 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. The junior has paced UIC in kills in seven matches so far this season and owns a team-high six double-doubles so far this season.

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 JAGS
IUPUI is without a win on the season, owning an 0-10 record on the season. The Jags most recently dropped a pair of matches at Robert Morris, falling 3-1 on Monday (March 15) and 3-0 on Tuesday (March 16). Allie Pogue leads IUPUI's offensive efforts, averaging 2.71 kills per set. Rhiannon Schuenemann handles things on defense, averaging 3.67 digs per set to lead the Jags. Emily Alan paces the Jags in blocks, stopping an average of 0.74 per set. The Flames own a 10-3 advantage all-time, winning the last four-straight meetings between the two teams.