PEORIA, Ill. ? Senior Nikki Pierzchala (Sylvania, Ohio/Northview) finished one kill short of matching a career-high, leading Bradley with 22 kills, but Illinois-Chicago doubled the Braves block total for the night and hit 30 points better as the Flames posted a 22-30, 30-23, 30-28, 30-26 victory over BU at Robertson Memorial Field House.

Pierzchala got off to a hot start, finding the floor with eight of her match-high 22 kills in the opening game. She accounted for nearly half of the Braves offense in the first set and helped spark Bradley to a 30-22 victory. Bradley (2-22 overall) led 17-15 when Pierzchala notched a kill and junior Katrina Goncher (Batavia, Ill./Aurora Rosary) followed with a pair of service aces to open an 8-2 run that gave the Braves a 25-17 lead. Illinois-Chicago cut the lead to six points on a pair of occasions before Pierzchala closed out the game with her eighth kill of the set.

Illinois-Chicago (12-12 overall) heated up in the second game, while Bradley struggled offensively. The Flames hit .205 in the second frame and limited the Braves to a .000 attack percentage. Bradley trailed by as many six points, before rallying back to pull to within two points at 25-23 as Pierzchala capped a 6-2 BU spurt with another kill. That would be the last point the Braves would get, however, as UIC would score the final five points of the game behind a pair of kills and block assist by Lana Lobdell to even the match with a 30-23 win.

Game three went down to the wire before the Flames escaped with a 30-28 win to take a one game lead in the match. Bradley led most of the game and owned a 21-19 advantage, when Casie Sullivan would key an 8-2 spurt with a kill, three assists and two block assists to give UIC a 27-23 advantage. The Braves would later pull even at 28-28 on back-to-back kills by Goncher and freshman Emily Austin (St. Louis, Mo./Oakville). Sullivan's fourth kill of the game gave UIC a 29-28 lead and Christin Hunt closed out the 30-28 win with her eighth kill of the frame for the Flames.

The Braves battled from behind throughout game four, before UIC was able to pull away late. The Flames led by as many as six points, but Bradley would pull even at 26-26 after a Pierzchala kill. A Bradley service error was followed by a pair of UIC aces by Emily McGinnis and a Bradley attack error put the finishing touches on a 30-26 UIC victory.

The Braves hit .168 as a team and tied a season-high with 10 service aces. Pierzchala was one of three Bradley players in double figures with a match-high 22 kills. Freshman Melissa Collins (Manchester, Mo./Parkway South) added a double-double with 15 kills and 13 digs, while Goncher was also in double figures with 10 kills. Junior setter Sam Black (Atalissa, Iowa/West Liberty) had a match-best 51 assists and tied a season-high with 18 digs for her team-leading 12th double-double of the year.

Bradley also owned an 85-79 edge in digs on the night, paced by sophomore Kaitlyn Comiskey's (Crystal Lake, Ill./South) match-best 28 digs.

UIC hit 30 points better than the Braves, finishing with a .198 attack percentage. While Bradley may have owned an advantage in digs, the Flames controlled play at the net and posted a 14-7 lead in digs. Sullivan highlighted play for UIC with eight kills, 46 assists, 11 digs and four block assists. Christin Hunt added 16 kills and four block assists, while Lobdell and Epiphany Davis each notched 10 kills each.

Bradley continues its three-match homestand Saturday against Missouri Valley Conference power Northern Iowa at 4 p.m. at Robertson Memorial Field House.