Valparaiso (0-21, 0-10 MVC)
Game #22 - January 31, 2026 - 2 p.m.
at UIC (9-11, 4-5 MVC)
Credit Union 1 Arena (8,000) - Chicago, Ill.

Next Up in Valpo Basketball: The Valpo women's basketball team faces its shortest trip of the MVC slate Saturday afternoon, as the Beacons make the quick trip to the Windy City to take on UIC.

Previously: Playing in front of 500 enthusiastic fifth-graders from Valparaiso Community Schools Thursday in the second annual Kids Day game at the ARC, Valpo battled visiting Indiana State before falling to the Sycamores, 77-63. Three Beacons finished in double figures in the scoring column, led by 19 points from Milana Nenadic.

Following Valpo Basketball: Video: ESPN+
Links for live coverage: Available via ValpoAthletics.com

Head Coach Courtney Boyd (0-21 at Valpo, 1st season; 180-89 [.669] overall, 9th season): Courtney Boyd was named the ninth head coach of the Valparaiso University women's basketball program on April 4, 2025. A national championship-winning head coach and player, an NAIA National Coach of the Year, and a two-time conference Coach of the Year, Boyd has won 20 or more games in seven of her first eight seasons as a head coach. She spent the last two seasons at the helm of the Quincy University program after six seasons as head coach at Clarke University, leading the latter program to the NAIA national title in 2022-23.

Series Notes: Valpo renews acquaintances with the most common opponent in program history on Saturday, as the Beacons match up with UIC for the 60th time - the Flames hold a 33-26 edge in the series, including a 7-2 lead since UIC joined the Valley. The MVC marks the fourth different conference the two programs have shared affiliation in, as Valpo and UIC were both previously together in the North Star Conference (1988-92), the Mid-Continent Conference (1992-94) and the Horizon League (2007-17). In the first meeting this season, the Flames earned a 61-44 win in Valpo despite a career game of 16 points and nine rebounds from Mor Shabtai.

@ValpoWBB...
...versus Indiana State
- The Beacons got off to a slow start Thursday, as they trailed 15-4 halfway through the opening quarter.
- Valpo bounced back with a 9-0 run over a three-minute stretch to eliminate much of the deficit, with Milana Nenadic contributing six points during that spurt. The Beacons were within 18-13 at the end of the first period.
- Indiana State scored eight points in three possessions to push its lead out to 12 points with 6:28 to play in the second quarter.
- Valpo responded with an 11-3 run over the course of three and a half minutes — a run which included triples from Mor Shabtai, Allia von Schlegell and Nenadic, the last of which brought the Beacons with 33-29 with 1:37 to play in the half.
- The Sycamores scored seven points over their last three possessions to take a 40-29 lead into halftime.
- Indiana State extended its lead to begin the third quarter, opening with a 13-2 run over the first six minutes of the half to push its lead to its apex at 22.
- Valpo immediately battled back out of a timeout, going on an 11-0 run — including six points from von Schlegell — to erase half the deficit and move within 11 with 1:55 to play in the period. The Sycamores led 57-42 with 10 minutes to play.
- Indiana State's lead remained near that 15-point mark for much of the fourth quarter. Valpo made a late push, getting to within 68-57 with 3:51 to play on a triple by Mikayla Huffine and shrinking its deficit to single digits for the first time in the second half when Kayla Sullivan hit two free throws to make it 70-61 with 1:55 to play, but the Beacons were unable to get any closer.
- Nenadic paced the Beacons for the fourth straight game in the scoring department as she scored a game-high 19 points. The redshirt junior also recorded her first career double-double, pacing all players with a career-best 12 rebounds.
- von Schlegell finished the afternoon with 15 points, including three 3-pointers. von Schlegell hit the 15-point mark for the eighth time this year and hit at least three triples for the eighth time as well.
- Sullivan rounded out the trio of Beacons in double figures with 12 points, her second-highest scoring game of the season — notably, Sullivan's highest-scoring game was also against the Sycamores. The junior also tied for game-high honors with a season-best three steals.
- The Beacons shot 30.6% from the floor and were 8-of-28 from 3-point range, while Indiana State hit at a 43.5% clip from the field and was 7-of-20 from deep.
- Valpo narrowly missed winning the rebounding battle, as the Sycamores held a 44-42 advantage on the glass. The 42 rebounds are the Beacons' most in Valley play this season, while they also tied their best mark in MVC action with 11 offensive boards.
- The Beacons finished with a positive assist/turnover ratio Thursday, notching 16 assists against just 12 turnovers. The 16 assists are the team's third-highest total this year, while the 12 turnovers are tied for its second-lowest mark in that department.

...at Bradley
- While they never led, the Beacons stayed with the Braves for much of the first quarter, as a pair of free throws from Milana Nenadic with 3:37 to play in the period had Valpo within 15-14.
- Bradley ended the opening quarter on a 10-2 run to lead 25-16 10 minutes into the game.
- The Braves kept Valpo off the board for the first 7:25 of the second quarter, scoring the first 22 points of the period. Bradley's lead was 51-21 at halftime.
- The Beacons outscored Bradley by three points over the first half of the third quarter, but the Braves outscored Valpo by eight over the back half as they led 69-34 at the conclusion of the period.
- Nenadic scored in double figures for the third straight game and the fifth time this year, going a career-best 6-of-7 from the foul line as she paced the Beacons with 10 points.
- Kayla Sullivan led all players with seven rebounds, matching her season high in that department. Autumn Dibb grabbed six boards off the bench as well.
- The Beacons hit at a season-low 22.2% clip from the field and were 3-of-18 from 3-point range. They did go 12-of-15 at the foul line, their 80% clip there their third-best of the year.
- Valpo held Bradley to 39.7% shooting overall from the floor, the second time in MVC play it has kept its opponent under 40% shooting.
- The Braves did hit 15-of-38 from the 3-point line, matching a season high for made triples by Valpo's opponents.

...looking ahead
- Valpo stays at home next week for games against Evansville and SIU - the first time the Beacons have played consecutive home games since Dec. 17 versus Central Michigan and Dec. 29 versus UNI.

...away from home
- Saturday's game is the sixth of 10 road games in MVC play for the Beacons, who played six true road games as well in the nonconference slate.
- Valpo is currently 0-11 in true road games.
- Last season's squad posted a 3-11 mark in true road games.

....and @ValleyHoops
- Valpo is in its ninth season as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.
- Valpo was picked outside the top-four of the MVC preseason poll, as the Valley released only the top four selections.
- The Valley finished last season ranked seventh in the NET, matching the conference's highest NET/RPI ranking in Valpo's time as an MVC member (2020-21).

...looking back at last year
- Valpo finished last season with a 13-19 overall record and went 9-11 in MVC play to finish in eighth place.
- Among the Beacons' 13 victories were a thrilling rally from a 20-point deficit for a home win over Drake which entered the game ranked 69th in NET, the program's highest-ranked win since a win over #54 UNI in 2021-22.
- Leah Earnest was tabbed a First Team All-MVC honoree as she concluded a decorated career that saw her finish first in program history in career rebounds and third in career scoring.
- The 2024-25 Beacons hit 245 3-pointers, third-most in a single season in program history, and tallied 314 steals, seventh on the program's single-season chart and the most since 2001-02.

@UIC_WBB
- UIC enters Saturday's game with a 9-11 overall record and sits at 4-5 in MVC play.
- The Flames, who had a bye in the Thursday game slot this week, have alternated losses and wins in their last seven outings - most recently falling 73-63 at Bradley this past Sunday.
- One of the MVC's leading scorers, Jessica Carrothers averages 18.4 points/game and also paces the Flames with 64 assists. Julia Coleman posts 14.5 points and a team-high 6.3 rebounds per game.

Another Schedule Quirk
- With an odd number of teams in the MVC this season, the Beacons have faced a few schedule quirks this year, and Saturday brings about another.
- Traditionally travel partners, Valpo and UIC have usually faced each other in one-off games, not as part of a typical two-game conference weekend.
- This is the first time Valpo has played UIC within two days of another game since playing at UIC Jan. 27, 2015 and then taking on Green Bay two days later - notably, that was the last time Valpo was in a league with an odd number of teams, as the Horizon League had nine teams that season.

Milana Feasts
- Redshirt junior Milana Nenadic has been on a tear offensively lately, averaging 20.3 points/game over the last four games while leading the Beacons in all four contests.
- This recent stretch comes after Nenadic averaged 6.6 points/game and scored in double figures just twice in the season's first 17 games.
- Nenadic became Valpo's first MVC weekly award winner in over four years Jan. 19, as she was named MVC Newcomer of the Week after scoring 34 points at Illinois State (more on that game later) and 18 points versus Drake.
- Nenadic has also hit the glass more recently, averaging 7.0 rebounds/game over the last four games after averaging 4.0 rebounds/game over the first 17 games.
- Most recently, Nenadic recorded her first career double-double against Indiana State, going for 19 points and 12 rebounds - she is the first Valpo player to reach those marks in a game in which she committed zero turnovers since Sharon Karungi tallied 22 points and 16 boards without a turnover Feb. 22, 2014 versus Oakland.

Allia Heats Up
- Freshman Allia von Schlegell has made a big impact in her rookie season.
- von Schlegell has scored in double figures 11 times this season, including in eight of Valpo's last 12 games. Eight of those outings has seen the freshman drop at least 15 points.
- Included in this run is a 17-point effort at Indiana State; back-to-back 18-point games versus SIUE and at Western Michigan; and a game-high and season-best 19 points at Evansville.
- von Schlegell currently ranks fourth among MVC freshmen in scoring (9.9 points/game) and is tied for first in 3-pointers made (38).
- She ranks 86th nationally in freshman scoring and is tied for 18th among freshmen nationally in 3-pointers made.

KK Gets Going
- Since being inserted into the starting lineup at the start of this calendar year, junior Kayla Sullivan has picked up her production across the board.
- Sullivan has averaged 7.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game over the last eight games after entering the game at Indiana State Jan. 1 averaging just 2.3 points and 1.7 rebounds per game.
- She has scored in double figures three times - 14 at Indiana State, 11 versus Drake and 12 this Thursday in the home game versus Indiana State.

Nenadic's Night
- It was truly a night to remember for Milana Nenadic at Illinois State Jan. 15, coming off the bench to deliver 34 points on 16-of-25 shooting.
- The 16 field goals made broke the program record for baskets in a single game, as the previous mark was shared at 15 by Deb Lahti (Feb. 19, 1983 vs. Carthage) and Lyn Swanson (Feb. 8, 1986 at Carthage).
- Nenadic is tied for ninth among NCAA D-I players this season for field goals in a game.
- Nenadic's 25 field goal attempts are tied for eighth-most in a single game in Valpo history.
- The junior now shares fifth on Valpo's single-game scoring chart with Dani Franklin, who dropped 34 at Stetson Nov. 12, 2016. Those two are the only Valpo players to score at least 34 in a game since 1992. Nenadic's 34 points are the most by a player coming off the bench in program history.
- The 34 points is tied with Murray State's Halli Poock for the highest-scoring game by an MVC player this season.
- She scored her 34 points while being matched up primarily against a likely All-MVC honoree in Illinois State's Doneelah Washington — notable, as Nenadic's previous career best was 20 points earlier this year while facing All-American Audi Crooks at Iowa State.
- Nenadic is just the fourth MVC player in the last nine seasons with at least 16 baskets in a game, and joins a few pretty solid players in that department — Drake's Katie Dinnebier, Belmont's Destinee Wells and Murray State's Katelyn Young.

Nonconference Scoring
- von Schlegell scored in double figures six times in nonconference action, among the best in program history in terms of double-digit scoring outputs by a freshman in nonconference games since Valpo joined the North Star Conference for the 1987-88 season:
Dani Franklin, 2014-15, 11
Meredith Hamlet, 2015-16, 8
Tabitha Gerardot, 2010-11, 8
Sarrah Stricklett, 1996-97, at least 7 (2 boxes unavailable)
Debbie Bolen, 1989-90, at least 7 (1 box unavailable)
Jeanette Gray, 1999-2000, 7
Allia von Schlegell, 2025-26, 6
Stephanie Greer, 1987-88, 6
Amy Cole, 1987-88, 6
Linda Batz, 1987-88, 6
Ali Saunders, 2022-23, 5
Jamie Gutowski, 2002-03, 5
- Notably, the six players ahead of von Schlegell on that list all went on to earn All-Freshman/Newcomer Team honors and closed their time at Valpo among the top-12 in program history in career scoring.

Skip the Second?
- Three times in MVC play, the second quarter has proven to be the Beacons' undoing.
- Drake outscored Valpo 19-7 in the second quarter, while the Beacons outscored the Bulldogs 49-47 in the other three periods.
- At Illinois State, a 31-12 second quarter for the Redbirds accounted for the entire final margin, as Valpo matched ISU 62-62 in the other three quarters.
- At Indiana State, the Sycamores' 24-13 advantage in the second quarter offset Valpo's 65-64 edge in the other three periods.

Shifting Starters
- Valpo used its ninth different starting lineup of the season last time out, as with Fiona Connolly sidelined due to injury, Milana Nenadic was reinserted into the starting five for the ninth time this year.
- Ten different players have been a part of at least one starting five this year, with only one - Mikayla Huffine - starting every game. All ten have started at least three games apiece.
- The Beacons have not used the same starting lineup in more than four consecutive games this season.

The Tall and the Short
- This year's Valpo roster features recent extremes on both ends of the height spectrum.
- Mor Shabtai and Mikayla Huffine both are listed at 5-4, making them the shortest Valpo players since 5-3 Rashida Ray (2007-11).
- On the flip side, Kamryn Winch and Milana Nenadic both check in at 6-3, making them the tallest Valpo players since 6-5 Nicole Johanson (2018-19).

International Flavor
- Valpo has a trio of international players on its 2025-26 roster: sophomore Mor Shabtai (Israel) and transfers Milana Nenadic (Ontario, Canada) and Kennedy Sproule (Manitoba, Canada).
- Prior to Shabtai's arrival last year, the Valpo program hadn't had an international player since Sharon Karungi (Uganda) roamed the paint from 2013-15.

Sister Act
- For the third straight season, the Beacons have a pair of sisters on their roster, as freshman Nuala Connolly joins senior sister Fiona on this year's squad.
- The last two years featured identical twins Nevaeh and Saniya Jackson.
- Before that, the last set of sisters to suit up together in the Brown and Gold were the trio of Hamlet sisters: Annemarie (2013-16) overlapped with both older sister Elizabeth (2013-14) and younger sister Meredith (2015-19).