Outside hitter Jackie Utz, a 1999 Second Team All-Midwestern Collegiate Conference performer at Illinois-Chicago, is transferring to Illinois State for her final collegiate season.
Utz claims the most exciting thing to happen to her was playing in the Illinois High School Association at Redbird Arena finals as a junior for Queen of Peace High School.
Now, Utz has decided to spend her final collegiate volleyball season playing her home matches in Redbird Arena.
Utz, who had 1,049 kills and 821 digs in three seasons for the Flames, competed against new Illinois State coach Sharon Dingman's Butler teams for the past three seasons. Dingman is excited about her new addition, who led the MCC in kills with 3.84 per game in 1999.
"Jackie brings us experience in the outside hitter position," said Dingman. "She is used to taking a lot of swings over the course of a match. We've seen her play. We know what she can do."
Now, Utz will bolster the Redbirds' deep corps of outside hitters and provide Dingman's first Illinois State team with a hard-swinging veteran. She is immediately eligible for play because Illinois-Chicago signed a waiver of the NCAA's one-year residency requirement.
"The most exciting thing that's ever happened to me is going to state (IHSA Class AA volleyball) as a junior in high school," said Utz. "Who would ever guess that, four years later, I would be playing at ISU again? "
As a prep player, Utz led Queen of Peace to a combined 67-11 record in her final two seasons. In 1995, Queen of Peace placed fourth in the IHSA Class AA Tournament at Redbird Arena.
Utz is one of only nine players in UIC history to reach 1,000 career kills. She had a school record 236 as a freshman and was the first Flames sophomore to reach 500 career kills. She is the only UIC player in history to record a 30/30 match with 32 kills and 30 digs vs. DePaul last season.
She will be a management major at Illinois State.
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UTZ ... rhymes with 'cuts'
