CEDAR FALL, Ia. (Nov. 24, 2024) – The #3 UIC volleyball team (22-9, 13-5 MVC) couldn't be stopped on the attack Sunday night at the McCleod Center, defeating #6 Valparaiso (18-14, 9-9 MVC) in four sets in the Quarterfinals round of the 2024 Missouri Valley Conference Volleyball Tournament.
Freshman
Antonie Kelnárová (Prague, Czech Republic) turned in a stellar performance, tallying 20 kills and 13 digs. Graduate student
Zahria Woodard (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park and River Forest) contributed 15 kills and eight total blocks. Junior
Cleo Lorenzo (Belo Horizonte, Brazil/Elite) collected 10 kills, four total blocks and three service aces in the win.
The full box score and play-by-play recap against Valparaiso can be found
here.
COMMENT FROM HEAD COACH JUSTIN INGRAM
"Antonie picked a great time to have her best match as a Flame! We needed her offensive production, and she produced in a big way. Our servers were relentless tonight. We relied on the strong serves to help our transition game. Up next, we face off against Drake and they are talented, however we are capable of being efficient. Slowing down their left side attackers will be an important task."
COMMENT FROM GRADUATE STUDENT ZAHRIA WOODARD
"I'm so proud of how the team performed today! It's never easy to beat a team three times in a season, but we showed up with the energy and focus we needed to get the job done in the Quarterfinals. Everyone stepped up, and it was a huge team effort. Tomorrow's match-up against Drake is going to be another tough challenge, but we're excited and are ready to bring the same fight with intensity in the Semifinals."
SOCIAL MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
- After 20 kills in the win against the Beacons, Kelnárová crushed her previous collegiate high in kills, surpassing her 16-kill performance against Missouri State on Oct. 11.
- Tallying 15 kills in the win, Woodard has surpassed the 1,000 career kills, sitting at 1,010 kills and counting.
- The Flames extend their win streak against the Beacons to nine matches, dating back since UIC joined the MVC in July 2022.
UP NEXT!
For the third consecutive season, the Flames are set to face off against #2 Drake (20-9, 16-2 MVC) in the Semifinals. First serve of the match is slated for 6 p.m. (CT). The match will be available to stream on ESPN+ with live stats on
UICFlames.com.
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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