Nov. 2, 2012

Box Score

MILWAUKEE - Kelsey Safranek had 19 kills as UIC claimed a 20-25, 25-20, 28-26, 25-17 win over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Friday night at the Klotsche Center.

Julie Kolinske had 18 kills to lead Milwaukee, which won the first set and had a set-point chance in the third before falling.

UWM (8-17, 3-8 Horizon) also got 14 kills from Elizabeth Egerer while Anna Bartz led the back-row efforts with 21 digs, leaving her two shy of 1,000 for her career. Rachel Neuberger added eight kills and six blocks.

"We're still fighting and pushing but we just can't quite finish things off," Milwaukee head coach Susie Johnson said. "We had opportunities to win that third set and that might have changed the outcome of the match. I'm proud of players like Julie and Rachel who keep fighting through injuries to contribute and keep giving us a chance to get some wins."

The third set was the real decider in the contest. After the teams split the first two frames, neither team could claim a real edge in the third. UWM rallied from a late two-point deficit to go up 24-23 on a UIC (16-12, 8-4) error, but the Flames struck back to fight off the set point. The Panthers then pushed away two set-point chances for UIC, with a kill by Kolinske knotting things at 25 and a kill by Sammi Herron tying the set at 26. But, two-straight kills by Nicole Allgood provided the answer for UIC and the Flames rode that momentum through the rest of the match.

The Panthers captured a solid win in the first set. UWM jumped ahead 10-5 after two-straight service aces by Kolinske and still led 15-11 following a UIC error. The lead was 18-14 after a solo block by Kolinske and 22-18 following an Egerer kill. UWM then wrapped things up on a kill by Neuberger.

It was all UIC in the second set. The Flames scored 12 of the first 17 points in the frame and eventually led 18-9 on a kill by Kelsey Safranek. The Panthers did fight back to within 21-16 on a UIC error and 22-18 on another Flame hitting error, but a kill by Nicole Allgood eventually wrapped things up for UIC.

After pulling out the third frame, UIC used a decisive 11-1 run to wrestle away control in the fourth. The Panthers actually led 11-7 in the early going but the Flames had an 18-12 advantage after a kill by Safranek. The UIC advantage hit 23-16 on a kill by Sara Sternard and the Flames eventually ended the contest on an ace from MaryKate Imrie.

UWM wraps up the home portion of its schedule with a Saturday contest against Loyola. The match begins at 2 p.m.