CHICAGO (April 11, 2023) - Loyola (14-18, 8-4) heads across town to take on UIC (0-35, 0-13) in its final non-conference game of the season. The Ramblers have won four of their last five games and look to pick up one more before heading into another home weekend of A-10 play. The Flames are still on the hunt for their first win of the 2023 campaign. Wednesday's game is scheduled to start at 5 p.m. at Flames Field. It can be watched on ESPN+, while live stats will be made available at uicflames.com.
LEADING OFF
• The Ramblers won their third straight conference series last weekend at UMass. Loyola went 2-1 against the Minutewomen, 2-1 at St. Bonaventure, and 3-0 vs. Saint Joseph's The only series they haven't come out on top in was the A-10 opener vs. George Mason.
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Madison Ebeling was tabbed the A-10 Player of the Week following her performance at UMass. She hit .700 (7-10) with a double, triple, and home run. She also tallied five runs, four RBI, and two stolen bases.
• Ebeling had a 3-for-3 outing in game two of last Friday's doubleheader. Two of those hits were multi-base hits with a triple and homer. She now leads the Ramblers with three home runs this season.
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Andie Broniewicz and
Peyton Pepkowski both have A-10 Pitcher of the Week nods this year. Both recognitions came after no-hitters for Loyola. Pepkowski retired eight batters against Butler back in March, while Broniewicz took down five Braves in a 2-0 win against Bradley.
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Haley Wallace is on a five-game hitting streak for the Ramblers. She went 2-for-2 with three RBI and two runs at St. Bonaventure to start the hot streak. Since then, Wallace has recorded a hit in the last four games, which includes a double at UMass.
• Pepkowski is up to 96 total strikeouts this season, which ranks fourth in the A-10. It also sits inside the NCAA top-100 ranking 85th in the nation. Pepkowski struck out a season-high 12 batters at St. Bonaventure.
• Head coach
Alicia Abbott is in her fourth year at the helm. During her tenure, the Ramblers are 56-86.
SCOUTING THE UIC FLAMES
The Flames are still on the hunt for their first win heading into Wednesday's midweek match-up. They've started the year 0-35 and 0-13 in MVC action. UIC took Belmont to extra innings in the series opener last weekend before the Bruins struck in the ninth and carried that momentum into the final two games for the sweep. The Flames are hitting .192 this season with a team ERA of 5.80.
FLAMES TO WATCH
• Carlee Jo Clark leads the Flames hitting .271 this season. She had 19 hits, which includes five doubles and a team-leading two home runs. Clark also has eight RBI and seven runs scored. She had a five-game hitting streak at the end of March and early April that included a 3-for-3 outing against Illinois State.
• Macia Ingles has a team-high 23 hits this season. She has a double, two RBI, and seven runs scored. Recently, Ingles went 2-for-4 at the plate against Illinois State and Valparaiso in back-to-back games.
• No UIC pitcher has seen more action in the circle than Christina Toniolo. She has logged over 100 innings of action and made 26 appearances. Toniolo leads the Flames with a 4.45 ERA and 54 strikeouts. Last week vs. Belmont, Toniolo retired a season-high seven batters.
SERIES HISTORY
UIC leads the all-time series 60-27-1. Loyola earned a win in the last meeting between the Ramblers and Flames in 2019. The Ramblers won 5-1 on their home field.
Nova Sinskul and Ebeling were on the 2019 squad, and Ebeling tallied a hit in the win.
