Volleyball Set for Chicago Cup Showdown

Friday, September 18

Chicago, Ill.

12 p.m.

DePaul University

Loyola

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9/17/2026 4:19:00 PM | WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL

Game Notes (PDF)

DePaul hosts Loyola Chicago and UIC this weekend

CHICAGO – DePaul volleyball (6-3, 0-0 BIG EAST) closes out its eight-match homestand this weekend with the annual Chicago Cup, welcoming crosstown foes Loyola Chicago (3-5) and UIC (3-6) to McGrath-Phillips Arena. The stretch has been one for the record books, featuring a state of Illinois indoor volleyball attendance record against No. 1 Nebraska, a sellout crowd for the program's first-ever meeting with Penn State, and a slate of matches against some of the highest-ranked programs to ever visit the Blue Demons. Friday's match against Loyola Chicago will air at 12 p.m. on Marquee Sports Network, while Saturday's match against UIC will stream on ESPN+ at 5 p.m.

"Our program understands why this weekend is circled on the calendar every year: the Chicago Cup means a great deal to this city," said head coach Marie Zidek. "It celebrates high-level volleyball among NCAA Division I programs from different conferences, all competing for ultimate bragging rights. Chicago has consistently been one of the strongest and most influential regions in the country at the youth level."

CHICAGO CUP SCHEDULE (Central Time)
Thursday, Sept. 17 | UIC @ Loyola | 6 p.m. | ESPN+ | Live Stats
Friday, Sept. 18 | Loyola @ DePaul | 12 p.m. | Marquee Sports Network | Live Stats
Saturday, Sept. 19 | UIC @ DePaul | 5 p.m. | ESPN+ | Live Stats

LAST TIME OUT
DePaul went 2-1 at the DePaul Invitational, opening with dominant sweeps of Central Michigan (25-14, 25-11, 25-13) and Western Michigan (25-19, 25-23, 25-19) before falling to Auburn in four sets (23-25, 25-20, 25-15, 25-12) to close the tournament. Junior middle blocker Jade Dudley-Epps was the headline performer of the week, hitting an .895 clip against Western Michigan to break both DePaul's 19-year-old single-match hitting percentage record and the BIG EAST single-match mark, en route to a spot on the DePaul Invitational All-Tournament Team and her first BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll nod. Leonor Polezzi also earned Weekly Honor Roll recognition, her second of the season, after running the offense for 114 assists over the four matches, including a season-high 43 against Western Michigan. Against Auburn, Kendall Timme led DePaul with 15 kills, Isabela Tavares-Salomon added 11, Polezzi dished 34 assists, and Nora Mannion paced the defense with 16 digs.

"This event gives us an opportunity to show young athletes what can happen when they stay home and help build programs right here in the city, both for their own development and professional aspirations, and for the programs committed to keeping top talent here," said Zidek. "The Chicago Cup is also a marquee event that welcomes the city to see the players and programs competing in our own backyard. These matchups have decades of history behind them. They're charged, they're exciting, and we look forward to competing with a bit of a chip on our shoulder. Regardless of records, these matches are always battles and always very close."

Rambler Rundown

Loyola Chicago enters at 3-5 fresh off a sweep of its own home tournament, highlighted by five-set wins over Southeast Missouri State and Bradley and a sweep of Alabama A&M
Sophomore outside hitter Leyna Nguyen powered the offense with 63 kills on a .373 clip over the weekend, including a career-high 27 kills against Bradley, and earned Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Week
Junior middle blocker Mallory Bohl also stood out with 17.0 total blocks and 23 kills on the week
The Ramblers rank near the top of the A10 statistically, with Mya Ball second in assists per set (9.57), Nguyen third in kills per set (3.63) and Avary DeBlieck third in blocks per set (1.22)
Ninth-year head coach Amanda Berkley, who owns a 156-98 (.614) record at Loyola, has the reigning A10 champions picked to finish second in the conference this season
Loyola Chicago holds a 29-16 edge in the all-time series, including a 10-6 mark at McGrath-Phillips Arena

Flames Focus

UIC comes in at 3-6, also coming off a pair of sweeps at its own tournament over Central Michigan and Western Michigan
Sophomore outside hitter Emma Colombari leads the Flames offensively at 2.30 kills per set
Sophomore libero Ava Young anchors the defense with 109 digs on the season (3.30 per set)
Justin Ingram enters his 10th season at the helm of the program
UIC was picked to finish tied for fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason poll
UIC holds a 29-21 edge in the all-time series, though DePaul owns an 11-9 mark on its home court

DePaul DeBrief

Leonor Polezzi leads the BIG EAST in assists per set (9.07, 272 total)
Kendall Timme ranks second in the league in kills per set (3.93, 118 total) and points per set (4.57, 137.0 total)
Isabela Tavares-Salomon sits sixth in kills per set (3.27, 98 total) and ninth in points per set (3.45, 103.5 total)
Nora Mannion ranks fourth in digs per set (4.50, 135 total)
Jade Dudley-Epps sits fourth in blocks per set (1.27, 38 total) and seventh in hitting percentage (.352)
As a team, DePaul ranks fourth in the BIG EAST in hitting percentage (.254), kills per set (13.10) and digs per set (13.93), fifth in assists per set (11.80), sixth in service aces per set (1.53) and eighth in blocks per set (2.07)

Milestone Watch

Amanda Saeger needs just one assist to reach 1,700 for her career (1,699)
Abby Cahill is four digs from 400 (396)
Leonor Polezzi is three blocks from 100 (97), 10 assists from 2,300 (2,290) and 40 digs from 700 (660)
Kendall Timme needs 81 kills for 500 (419)
Jade Dudley-Epps needs 66 kills for 400 (334)

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TICKET INFORMATION
Season ticket memberships are now live for the 2026 DePaul Volleyball season! Season ticket memberships include access to all 15 anticipated regular season matches at McGrath-Phillips Arena in Lincoln Park. Season tickets are available beginning at $79 for general admission and $129 for courtside seating! Want to bring your team to the match? Group ticket deposits are also available for parties of 10 or more. Visit DePaulBlueDemons.com/Tickets to reserve your seats today!