EVANSTON, Ill. – The UIC volleyball team closed out non-conference play and action at the annual Chicago Cup. The Flames took on Loyola and DePaul on the final day of the tournament, suffering a pair of 3-0 setbacks.
 
Martina Delucchi led the Flames with 24 kills over the course of Saturday's pair of matches while Paola Santiago added 14 and Zahria Woodard contributed 13. Sohila Wafeek dished out 48 of UIC's 67 assists and Jaclyn Oblena led UIC's defense with 25 digs.
 
UIC will now focus its attention to the start of Horizon League play, opening the conference slate on Thursday, Sept. 23 at IUPUI.
 
How It Happened – vs. Loyola

• Loyola took a commanding lead of the opening set, using a 9-1 run to jump out to a 14-7 advantage and force UIC's second timeout of the set. The Flames threatened with a 6-1 run late in the set to pull within three, but Loyola closed out the final four points to take the 25-18 victory. Woodard had an effective opening set, recording four kills on a .571 hitting percentage.
• UIC jumped out to its largest lead of the second set at 6-2 thanks largely to Becca Oldendorf who had three of her four kills in the second set during the scoring spree. The teams would battle back and forth, with the Flames owning a slim 19-18 advantage in the closing points. Loyola closed the set on a hot streak, using a 7-1 run over the final eight points to steal the set, 25-20.
• Delucchi dominated in the third set, as she was responsible for eight of UIC's 16 kills in the final frame. A kill by Delucchi and a bad set by the Ramblers had the Flames within one at 20-19 in the closing moments. The 'Blers closed out the set, scoring the final three points to claim the match.

 
How It Happened – vs. DePaul

• The Flames and Blue Demons kept thing close in the opening set, with Delucchi's kill fiving the Flames a 13-11 lead. DePaul rattled off five unanswered points to take the lead and wouldn't look back, claiming a 25-18 victory.
• The second set took extra points as the Flames battled back from a pair of deficits. After trailing 15-11, UIC used a 4-0 run to even things up at 15-all. The Blue Demons then took a 24-21 lead and were in position to take the second set before UIC stormed back. A pair of kills by Santiago served as bookends to a Delucchi kill, leveling things at 24-all and forcing a DePaul timeout. Out of the timeout, a kill and a block put DePaul up 2-0 in the match.
• DePaul jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the third set and never looked back, cruising to a 25-14 victory. The Blue Demons had their highest hitting percentage in the third and final set while limiting the Flames to just five kills and 10 errors.

 
Up Next

• UIC begins Horizon League play with a pair of road matches this week.
• The Flames face IUPUI on Thursday, Sept. 23 with first serve set for 5 p.m. (CT) before remaining on the road for a Sunday (Sept. 26) match at Purdue Fort Wayne.