DeKALB, Ill. – The UIC men's soccer team will close out the month of August, as well as its season-opening four-match road trip, on Sunday night when the Flames make the 70-mile trek west to take on former conference foe Northern Illinois at the NIU Soccer and Track & Field Complex. While Sunday's match isn't penciled for broadcast, fans can follow the action via live stats at UICFlames.com.

MATCH #4
UIC "Flames" (0-2-1, 0-0-0 MVC) at Northern Illinois "Huskies" (1-2-0, 0-0-0 Horizon League)
When: Sunday, Aug. 30th  |  7 p.m. CT
Where: DeKalb, Ill.  |  NIU Soccer and Track & Field Complex 
Live Coverage: Live Stats

SERIES NOTES
Sunday will mark the 26th meeting between UIC and Northern Illinois on the soccer pitch, with the Flames holding a 15-9-1 series lead against the Huskies, including five wins and a draw in their last eight meetings with NIU. However, the Huskies won the most recent encounter between the programs, a 2-1 decision last year (Oct. 25, 2025) at Flames Field. Current senior defender Hector Gil nodded home a corner kick from classmate and backline partner Sota Nakazono in the 88th minute, but UIC wasn't able to net the equalizer in the closing moments.

UIC has a 7-5-1 record against Northern Illinois when the scene shifts to DeKalb. The Flames have won their last two matches at NIU (and earned points in three of the past four), most recently securing a 4-2 victory on Sept. 28, 2024. Current senior midfielder Darrell Turcios got UIC off to what would become a 3-0 Flames lead before a flurry of scores at both ends (three in a 1:19 span, including UIC's fourth score of the night) just before the 75th minute made for a somewhat frantic finish. 

THE TIES THAT BIND
Although Sunday's match is a non-conference affair, UIC and Northern Illinois have played under the same conference umbrella on a handful of occasions through the years, including stints in the Horizon League (1994-96) and most recently, in the Missouri Valley Conference (2023-25) before the Huskies returned to the Horizon League over the summer. In those six seasons as joint conference members, UIC went 4-2 against NIU.

Flames junior midfielder Martin Montoya, who came to UIC as a mid-season enrollee in January, suited up for Northern Illinois the past two seasons, appearing in 27 matches and collecting seven goals and four assists. Montoya did not play in the 2024 match between UIC and NIU, but last year, he started for the Huskies and played 49 minutes in NIU's 2-1 win over UIC at Flames Field.

On the other bench, NIU redshirt junior defender Tomasz Slawek attended UIC for two years (2023 and 2024), redshirting his first year and playing in three matches as a sophomore before heading to DeKalb, where he scored his first collegiate goal for the Huskies in last year's match at UIC.

LAST TIME OUT: OAKLAND
Senior defender Sota Nakazono and junior midfielder Martin Montoya both scored their first goals of the season and UIC once again claimed a sizable statistical edge over its opponent, but Oakland made the most of its chances on Thursday night to slip by the Flames, 3-2 at the Oakland Soccer Field in Rochester Hills, Mich.

Nakazono leveled the match at 1-1 when he scored unassisted less than three minutes into the second half. Montoya then pulled UIC back within a goal with his strike in the 74th minute, converting a pass from freshman midfielder Artem Grinblat (with Grinblat picking up his first collegiate point) to set up a frantic final quarter-hour as the visitors searched for the equalizer. In those closing 15-plus minutes, the Flames earned eight corner kicks and six shots (three on goal), but simply ran out of time before the tying score came.

UIC finished with a 21-11 edge in total shots, 10-7 margin in shots on goal and staggering 16-5 spread on corner kicks. Junior midfielder Sebastian Khoury led the Flames with a career-high four shots on the night.

ON THE FRONT FOOT
Despite still seeking its first win of the season, UIC has had the upper hand for large portions of all three matches to date. Thus far, the Flames have outshot their opponents by better than a 2-to-1 margin (51-25), including a similar spread in shots on goal (25-12) and almost a 3-to-1 advantage on corner kicks (34-12).

2026 FLAMES FACTS
UIC posted a 10-3-5 record last season, going 2-1-4 in MVC play, and advanced to the Valley tournament semifinals for the second time in three years. The Flames also opened last year by going unbeaten in their first 10 matches (7-0-3), including victories over crosstown rivals Northwestern and Loyola, as well as a draw at DePaul.

This season, UIC returns 15 players off last year's squad (10 who started at least one match), including four of its top six point scorers, led by senior midfielder and second-team all-MVC selection Darrell Turcios, who had career highs of five goals, four assists and 14 points last season. The Flames also welcome back starting netminder Owen Cornell, who got the call 15 times between the pipes and posted an 8-2-5 record with a 1.33 goals-against average and four shutouts.

PRESEASON HONORS
Senior midfielder Darrell Turcios was selected to the Preseason All-MVC Team via a vote of the Valley's seven head coaches, the conference announced Aug. 17. In addition, UIC was picked to finish fourth in the preseason coaches' balloting, earning 29 points to place behind Western Michigan (44 pts.), Drake (40 pts.) and Evansville (34 pts.).  

ON THE ROAD AGAIN…
UIC is opening the 2026 season with four consecutive road matches, its longest run away from home since a similar four-match stretch from Sept. 8-19, 2023. It's the longest season-opening road trip for the Flames since 2004, when they opened with five in a row away from Chicago (at Denver, at Air Force, at Northern Illinois, at the UNCW Seahawk Soccer Classic against UNCW and Jacksonville).

…BUT WE'LL BE HOME SOON
After its four-match road trip, UIC will play a school-record six consecutive home matches at Flames Field, covering the entire month of September. Among the visitors to town during that record-setting homestand will be Chicagoland rivals DePaul (Sept. 3), Loyola (Sept. 13) and Northwestern (Sept. 19), as well as Power Four opponent Notre Dame (Sept. 29). A full slate of promotions are also on tap throughout the 2026 men's soccer season, with complete details available here. 

UP NEXT: DePAUL
UIC's school-record six-match homestand gets underway Thursday at 7 p.m. (CT) when the Flames square off with crosstown rival DePaul at Flames Field. It will be UIC's next Campus Celebration Night and this year's edition of the UIC Soccer Scarves will be given away. For those who cannot make the match in person, ESPN+ will broadcast the action live, with Conor Clingen on the call, while UICFlames.com will also offer live stats.

FOLLOW THE FLAMES
Once again this season, UIC students, staff and youths in eighth grade and under are admitted to all home soccer matches free of charge, while adults and youths in ninth grade and above can purchase tickets for $5 each at the northwest (Morgan St.) or southeast (Granderson Stadium home plate) entrances to Flames Field on match night. Discounted tickets for groups of 10+ adults, are on sale for $3 each. In addition, fans can buy the Flames Fast Pass, a one-time $50 purchase that will provide the bearer with access to all UIC home athletics events (except men's and women's basketball) during the 2026-27 academic year.
 
For more information on UIC men's soccer, fans are encouraged to visit UICFlames.com, or follow the Flames on social media through X (@UIC_MSOC and @UICFlames) and Instagram (@uic_msoc and @uicflames).

 
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