UIC will face the Valley's hottest team Saturday night, when the Flames visit league-leading Belmont.

The Flames got back in the win column last weekend, defeating Bradley 3-0 for their first win in Missouri Valley play.  Andres Lemus and Josh Torres both moved into a tie for the team lead in goals by scoring one apiece.  Christian Crespo assisted on Ricardo Avalos' late goal, which moved him into the top three in the Valley in assists.

Belmont has won their last four matches, and is the only Valley team with six points in conference action.  Their overall record of 5-1-2 is also the best in the Valley, and they have a draw with then-#17 Lipscomb to their credit.  Michael Saunders is one of two Bruins with three goals on the season.  He also has three assists, to rank among the league leaders in both categories.

Each team has relied on steady goalkeeping.  Andres Vasquez has four shutouts, leads the Valley in goals-against average, and is second in save percentage.  Belmont's Nate Logan has three clean sheets and is right behind Vasquez in the keeper statistics.  Each keeper has allowed just one goal to Valley opponents, and each has allowed more than one goal in a game just once.

The teams have a bit of history between them.  Belmont was an affiliate member of the Horizon League from 2013 to 2017.  The squads met every year in that span, and UIC won each encounter, by an aggregate score of 14-1 over the five matches.
Saturday's match will start at 6 p.m. and will be available on ESPN3.