Evansville, Ind. (Oct. 13, 2023)– In a three-hour, 45-minute bout on the volleyball court Friday night, the UIC volleyball team (13-8, 4-4 MVC) made a valiant effort on the road against Evansville (8-11, 3-5 MVC) but fell to the Purple Aces in five sets, 3-2. 

Both teams made history in this match, breaking the NCAA women's volleyball record for the longest match played, surpassing the 1998 match between Hawaii and BYU that went three hours, 38 minutes.

COMMENT FROM UIC HEAD COACH JUSTIN INGRAM
"I'm proud of our will to compete and battle throughout the evening, however we didn't have enough defensive answers for the two attackers from Evansville.  We certainly had our opportunities to win the match, including the numerous match points we had."

FIRST SET (25-22, UIC)

• The Flames started the set off strong, going on a 4-1 rally that was capped off by an ace from sophomore setter Francesca Venturini (Bergamo, Italy/Liceo Classico Paolo Sarpi).
• Senior Becca Oldendorf (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Township) put an end to a lengthy sequence with her second kill of the night to maintain UIC's lead at 7-5.
• Senior Zahria Woodard (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park and River Forest) found a hole in the Purple Aces' defense to earn her second kill of the set to keep the Flames ahead with a 13-9 advantage.
• After Evansville nearly tied the score midway through the set, kills from senior Mikala Henderson (St. Michael, Minn./St. Michael Albertville) and freshman Za'Niya Boyles (Columbia, S.C./Gray Collegiate Academy) gave UIC an 18-14 lead.
• After freshman Gabi Peter's (Gilbert, Ill./Hampshire) second kill of the night, a blocking assist from Woodard and sophomore Cleo Lorenzo (Belo Horizonte, Brazil/Elite) forced Evansville into a timeout. UIC led late 21-16.
• A late 6-1 rally from the Purple Aces was thwarted after Lorenzo's third kill of the set kept UIC ahead 23-22.
• After an attack error, the Flames won their first set of the match behind Boyles' second kill of the night.

SECOND SET (25-22, UE)

• Lorenzo's fourth kill of the match gave UIC the first point of the set.
• After an early 3-0 rally from Evansville, the Flames responded with a 3-0 rally of their own, highlighted by Henderson's third kill of the match to tie it at 9-9.
• A 7-1 rally midway through the set for Evansville was eventually thwarted with kills from Boyles and Woodard. The Flames remained behind 18-15.
• A late 4-0 rally from UIC forced a timeout from Evansville. The rally was highlighted by kills from senior teammates Henderson and Oldendorf.
• Another pair of kills from Henderson and Oldendorf brought the Flames close before the Purple Aces won the second set to tie the match at 1-1.

THIRD SET (27-25, UE)

• Evansville began the set on an 8-1 run that was thwarted behind Woodard's seventh kill of the match.
• Henderson's seventh kill of the night sparked offensive momentum for the Flames, as UIC went on a 7-2 rally. Woodard earned three more additional kills during that span, becoming the first player from UIC to break into double digits on the attack in the match.
• Freshman outside hitter Tamara Kisic (Belgrade, Serbia) became red-hot on the attack for UIC, tallying three kills in a short period of time, as the Flames trailed 22-19.
• The Flames tied the set at 23-23 after an attack error from Evansville.
• Tied at 25, the Purple Aces won two points in a row to secure their second set win of the match.

FOURTH SET (25-21, UIC)

• The Flames began the set with an early 2-1 lead behind a Purple Aces' attack error and Boyles' fifth kill of the match.
• Kisic's fourth kill of the night ended a 6-0 rally for Evansville as UIC trailed 7-3.
• Down 11-7, Henderson's 11^th kill of the night brought UIC to within three of the Purple Aces.
• A series of blocking assists from Oldendorf, Henderson and Boyles gave UIC the late 20-18 lead.
• Senior Sohila Wafeek (Cairo, Egypt/Al Gomhorya Language School) collected two aces in the third set, with her second ace giving the Flames the 23-18 lead.
• The Flames pushed the match to the fifth set behind Boyles seventh kill of the night.

FIFTH SET (36-34, UE)

• The two teams traded points early in the set. Kisic earned UIC's fourth ace of the match to tie the set at 4-4.
• Henderson's 16^th kill of the night tied the match at 14-14.
• Wafeek collected 20 assists throughout the fifth set, finishing the match with 59 of the Flames' 76 assists of the match.
• 23 different match points pushed the fifth set to its brink. Evansville ultimately won the match with a 36-34 set victory.

BY THE NUMBERS

• UIC and Evansville both scored 131 points Friday evening. The 131 points scored is tied for the second-most points scored in a five-set match with the 25-point scoring format (2008-present) in NCAA women's volleyball history.
• Three members of the Flames recorded career-highs for kills against the Purple Aces; Henderson (20), Boyles (12) and Kisic (9). Woodard's 13-kill performance was a new season-high for the senior.
• Earning one ace tonight for the Flames, Oldendorf now has an ace in the last eight matches, dating back to Sept. 22 against Southern Illinois (12-7, 4-4 MVC).
• The 79 kills hit Friday are a new season-high for the Flames, surpassing the 73 kills they had in their win against Drake (13-6, 6-1) on Sept. 29.

UP NEXT FOR THE FLAMES

The Flames travel down US-150 to face off against Indiana State (2-16, 0-8 MVC) Saturday. First serve is scheduled for 4 p.m. ET. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+ and live stats will be made available at UICFlames.com.

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• Each match will be available to stream on ESPN+. Live stats will also be available as well at UICFlames.com.
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