CHICAGO — The Oakland University volleyball team fell to UIC in four sets (19-25, 27-25, 22-25, 25-22) Monday night inside the Flames Athletic Center. The loss broke a three-match winning streak for the Golden Grizzlies (5-4 HL), while the Flames improved to 8-1 overall.  

Jamie Walling led the OU attack with a team-best 18 kills at a .444 clip. Patti Cesarini and Brittany Welch also notched double-digit kills with totals of 14 and 12, respectively. AnnaBelle Tomei paced the Golden Grizzly setters with a match-high 33 assists.

Defensively, Lindsey Wightman tallied a match-best 27 digs, which marked the seventh time this season she has finished with 25 or more in the category. Welch finished with 12 digs, resulting in her first double-double of the season. Cesarini and Tomei tied for third on the team in digs with eight apiece. Anna Nie tied with Walling for the team lead in blocks with three. 

UIC held the advantage in hitting percentage (.222-to-.205), kills (64-to-55), assists (62-to-52), and service aces (6-to-1) in the Horizon League contest. Meanwhile, the Golden Grizzlies led in total digs (77-to-73) and recorded a mere one ball handling error. 

Oakland dropped the opening match, 25-19. UIC built an 11-6 UIC after five-straight points, which proved too much for OU to overcome. The Flames hit an efficient .300 in the set, while eight attack errors plagued the Golden Grizzly offense. 

OU bounced back with a 27-25 victory in the second set. Oakland was down 21-17 but responded with a 6-2 run to even the set at 23-all. An attack error by UIC clinched the set win to even the match. The Golden Grizzly defense was especially impressive in the set by limiting the Flames to a .135 hitting clip. 

In the third set, Oakland jumped out to a 15-10 advantage following a kill by Walling. However, UIC gained an 18-17 lead after an attack error by OU. The Golden Grizzlies' late comeback attempt fell short, as the Flames finished in front, 25-22. 

UIC clinched the match with a 25-22 victory in the fourth set. Once again, the set came down to the wire, as Walling tallied her 18th kill of the night to tie the match at 22-all. UIC totaled three-straight points in return to earn the home win.

The Golden Grizzlies will close their series at UIC tomorrow at 5 p.m. ET. The match will air on ESPN+.