CHICAGO (Nov. 9, 2023) – The UIC volleyball team is back at Credit Union 1 Arena this weekend, as the Flames host Northern Iowa (21-6, 15-0 MVC) Friday at 4 p.m. and Drake (20-7, 13-2 MVC) Saturday at 5 p.m. The Panthers and Bulldogs currently are ranked first and second in the Missouri Valley Conference standings.

SCOUTING NORTHERN IOWA

• The Panthers are currently on a 15-match winning streak dating back to Sep. 16. Northern Iowa needs two more wins to clinch the MVC regular season title.
• The Panthers edged the Flames 3-1 during the first meeting between the programs in September. Senior Martina Delucchi (La Plata, Argentina/San Cayetano) led all attackers with 19 kills. Becca Oldendorf (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Township) also had double-digit kills in the match with 10.
• The Panthers have the top averages in kills (14.82), assists (13.81) and points (18.35) per set in The Valley.
• Senior Emily Holterhaus remains one of the top attackers in the conference, tallying 339 kills this season, an average of 3.77 kills per set.

SCOUTING DRAKE

• The Flames are looking for the regular season sweep against the Bulldogs. The Flames defeated Drake in a five-set thriller at the Knapp Center back in September. Delucchi tallied 19 kills and sophomore Cleo Lorenzo (Belo Horizonte, Brazil/Elite) collected 15 kills and three blocks in the victory.
• The Flames snapped a three-match winning streak for the Bulldogs in the series. Drake remains ahead in the overall series with 6-5 advantage.
• The Bulldogs are currently in second place in the MVC Standings with their only other loss coming at the hands of Northern Iowa in October.
• Senior Kacie Rewerts remains a pillar of the Bulldogs' defense, boasting the ninth-best blocks per set average (1.77) in the NCAA.

BY THE NUMBERS

• The Flames have won their last five matches, including three-consecutive match sweeps. UIC has tallied 10 match sweeps this season.
• With a .418 hitting percentage, Oldendorf remains the most accurate attacker in the MVC and ranks 13^th nationally in the statistical category. The middle blocker is son pace to break the single season hitting percentage and career hitting percentage (.367) records. The records are currently held by 2023 UIC Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Stephenee Yancy.
• Senior Zahria Woodard (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park and River Forest) has collected 385 career blocks. She is 10 blocks away from having the third-most career blocks in program history.
• The Flames tallied 12 aces in their win against Bradley last weekend, the second-most in the season by the team. The Flames have 166 aces in the season, the second-most in the MVC.

AN EVENTFUL WEEKEND

• The match-up against the Panthers kicks off UIC's homecoming festivities. Friday's match is part of a double-header at Credit Union 1 Arena, with the men's basketball team facing off against Little Rock later in the evening at 7:30 p.m. in the team's home opener.
• Saturday's match against Drake will celebrate and honor past and present members of the military as part of UIC's Veteran's Day festivities. The match will also be senior night, where all ten UIC seniors will be honored for their contributions to the program in a post-match ceremony.

       NEED TO KNOW

• Each match will be available for streaming on ESPN+. Peter Ferreri will be on the call against the Panthers and Leo Staudaher will be calling the match against Drake on Saturday.
• Live stats will be available at UICFlames.com.

POSTSEASON OUTLOOK

• The Flames final three matches of conference play will be played at home. They finish conference play on Wednesday with a match against Valparaiso (18-10, 10-5 MVC) at 6 p.m.
• UIC currently is tied for fourth place in the conference standings with Illinois State (11-16, 9-6 MVC) and is one match behind third place Valparaiso.
• The Flames can finish as high as third and as low as the sixth seed in the MVC standings.
• Eight teams make the 2023 Missouri Valley Conference Volleyball Championship. The conference tournament will run from Nov. 19-22 and will take place at the Hammons Student Center in Springfield, Mo.

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

• For more information, fans are encouraged to visit UICFlames.com, or follow the Flames on social media through X (@UIC_Volleyball and @UICFlames) and Instagram (@uic_volleyball and @uicflames).

 
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