Despite progress on the offensive end that resulted in season highs in shots and shots on goal, UIC was unable to get one past the keeper in a 3-0 loss at Penn Thursday evening.

Coach Nikolic's Summary
"I look at how we came out and I think we can do more and we need to do more.  We need to sustain more of the match.  Our backs and goalkeeper are working extremely hard.  We're still a work in progress.  We're going to watch the video tonight and plan our best options.  We're trying to find the right combinations and what's going to work to be in a more sustained buildup and give us more opportunities to go forward."
 
Turning Points

• Penn got the only goal they would need in the 17^th minute.  A service into the box took a bounce and was then toe-poked high into the net as Lena Kurz went low trying to make a play.
• Kurz made a tremendous save going to her right in the late stages of the first half.  But three minutes later, a corner kick was headed past her inside the far post, where two Flames defenders were stationed and may have screened her vision.
• The bounces went Penn's way in the 78^th minute.  A shot was blocked, but after the bounding ball ended up at the foot of Lauren Teuschl, she tapped it toward the goal where it snuck inside the post.

Match Details
UIC had some of its most consistent final-third play of the young season, especially early in the match, but was unable to convert any of its opportunities into a goal.  The team's leader in shots, Makena Shaw, was in the mix on two different occasions inside the first 10 minutes and fired the match's first shot on goal.  On the other end, the Flames' defense was crisp.  Whether Lena Kurz was directing traffic and picking off crosses, or the back line was collapsing on dribblers and blocking shots, it seemed as though goals would be hard to come by.

The Flames, however, paid dearly for the first small defensive lapse.  Jackie Bruder got a step past her defender and was able to send a cross over a charging Kurz.

"Penn's a good team.  I expect them to do well in the Ivy League, which over the last few years has been a multiple-bid league to the NCAA tournament," Nikolic said.  "We've played some very tough teams in the non-conference, and with Western Illinois and Marquette out of the Big East still to come, this is a very difficult schedule.  We knew that going in and we're going to battle each and every game."

Kaitlyn Montague sent a free kick from 35 yards out through everyone and on goal just minutes after Penn scored.  Later in the match she served in a corner that resulted in a shot from inside the box.  She initiated the team's last serious threat late in the match when she took advantage of an incline on the side of the field to generate momentum for a throw-in that Nia Harley redirected on goal.

"The team works extremely hard.  We fought all the way to the end," Nikolic stated.  "I could feel it in the second half, we pushed and looked for solutions.  That's a good base for us to keep working from.  If that wasn't the case, we'd be in an even worse position.  Even in the last 10 seconds we're trying to get it into the box."

Those would be UIC's best chances on offense.  The rest of the team's highlights came on the defensive side – Kurz made a leaping save late in the first half, and Grace Haines made a clean, aggressive tackle in the box to stifle a threat.  Brielle Gomez, who along with Montague played the full 90 minutes, nicely blocked a shot later in the match.

The Flames totaled six shots by five different players, and four Flames had a shot on goal each.  Both of those totals were season highs, as were the five corner kicks the team earned.  "Having the most shots of the season is encouraging, but nothing was really dangerous, and when we're in dangerous spots, we don't hit it well," Nikolic observed.  "We recognize that and have to keep seeking solutions."
 
Ryan Skall returned to the starting lineup, Natalie Montini made her first collegiate start, and Leah Senese made her first start of the season.  Tina Thorsen was a 31^st-minute sub, marking her return from an injury that kept her off the field since the 2019 Horizon League championship match.

The Flames will make their home debut Sunday afternoon against Western Illinois.  "The season is young and we have another opportunity right around the corner," Nikolic concluded.  "We're going to quickly prep for Western Illinois and we're looking forward to being back at home after a long stretch on the road."