CHICAGO (Nov. 1, 2023) – The UIC women's soccer team's bid for the 2023 Missouri Valley Conference crown continues Thursday as the No. 4 Flames take on No. 1 Drake in the semifinals of the conference championship. Thursday's contest will be UIC's first time competing in the semifinals as members of the MVC.

LAST TIME OUT
The Flames advanced to the league semifinals after an exhilarating 4-3 penalty kick shootout victory over No. 5 Murray State in the quarterfinals. Sophomore goalkeeper Trish Georgiou (Gurnee, Ill./Warren Township) emerged as one of UIC's heroes, entering the match from the bench prior to the shootout to make three crucial saves for the Flames. Madison Ferris (Bellevue, Wash./The Bush School) delivered the match-winning penalty kick in the sixth round of the shootout for UIC.

PLAYER TO WATCH
Forward/midfielder Sophia Jaime (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso) is having a breakout sophomore season for the Flames, as she leads the Flames in goals (five), points (12) and shots (37). Jaime currently ranks fifth in the MVC in shots per game (2.06) and is tied for eighth in the conference with four assists.

SCOUTING DRAKE
The top-seed Bulldgos won the 2023 MVC regular season title after defeating Belmont, marking their seventh regular season championship in program history. Drake finished with a conference record of 8-1-1, with UIC being the only team to hand the Bulldogs a conference loss in 2023.

The Bulldogs have not played since their regular season finale on Oct. 22 after earning a bye to the semifinals. Forward Emma Nagel leads Drake in goals (eight) and points (20) and is currently ranked second in the MVC in points per game (1.11). Midfielder Angela Gutierrez is tied for second on the team in points (15) and ranks sixth in the MVC in points per game and tenth in the conference in shots per game. Forward Layla Kelbel is also ranked in the top ten in the MVC in goals (six) and points (15).

This will be the second match between the two programs this season, with UIC earning the 3-1 vicotry against Drake in late September. The overall series is tied at two games a piece between the Flames and Bulldogs.  

FLAMES' CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Sunday's quarterfinal win against Murray State was UIC's second postseason win in program history and the Flames' first playoff victory as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. 2023 marks the third time the Flames have reached the conference tournament semifinals since the program's inception in 2014. In 2019, UIC advanced to the Horizon League semifinals and in 2020 the Flames qualified for a smaller four-team Horizon League tournament.

WIN AND ADVANCE
The winner of Thursday's match will move on to the finals to take on the winner of No. 2 Missouri State and No. 6 Valparaiso on Sunday. The championship match will be held at Mediacom Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa at 1 p.m.



MATCH INFORMATION
The Flames and Bulldogs will kick off at 6 p.m. at Mediacom Stadium. Fans will have the opportunity to stream the event on ESPN+, while live stats will be available on the Flames' website.

FOLLOW ON SOCIAL
For more information on Flames soccer, fans are encouraged to visit UICFlames.com, or follow the Flames on social media through X (@UIC_WSOC and @UICFlames) and Instagram (@uic_wsoc and @uicflames).