Elon Athletics Weekly Update

ELON, N.C. – Every Monday, Phoenix fans can get a look at the week ahead with our “Elon Athletics Weekly Update” feature when we will preview all the week’s upcoming events for our sports teams. “Follow us” on Twitter at @elonphoenix and @elonscores, “Like” Elon Phoenix on Facebook and continue to check elonphoenix.com to stay current on all things Elon Athletics.

Football
Football Signing Day Luncheon, Wednesday, Feb. 5, at 12 p.m., Best Western Plus

• Elon will host its annual football signing day luncheon, presented by Wells Fargo and the Phoenix Club, at the Best Western Plus on Huffman Mill Road on Wednesday at noon.
• For $15 per person, fans can enjoy a meal catered by Grill 584 and hear from new Phoenix head coach Rich Skrosky and his staff.

Men’s Basketball (12-11, 5-3 SoCon)
Elon Basketball Live, Tuesday, Feb. 4, at 6:30 p.m., Mellow Mushroom (Burlington)
Elon vs. UNCG, Thursday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m., Alumni Gym
Elon vs. Georgia Southern, Saturday, Feb. 8, at 7 p.m., Alumni Gym (ESPN3)

• Coming off two wins last week, Elon returns home for a pair of games this week versus UNCG (Feb. 6) and Georgia Southern (Feb. 8). Saturday’s game will be broadcasted live on ESPN3.
• The Phoenix topped Western Carolina, 74-60, last Thursday, Jan. 30, before going to Boone, N.C., for a key 83-76 win over Appalachian State. Elon’s season sweep of ASU is the school’s first since the 1968-69 season. This year marks the first time in school history Elon and won road games at ASU and at Davidson in the same season.
• Ryley Beaumont enters Thursday’s game with 993 career points. If Beaumont reaches the 1,000-point milestone this season, Elon will be the only team in the nation with four 1,000-point scorers on its current roster. Lucas Troutman, Jack Isenbarger and Sebastian Koch all have over 1,000 career points.

Men’s Tennis (2-1)
Elon vs. Norfolk St., Saturday, Feb. 8 at 9:30 a.m., Jimmy Powell Tennis Center
Elon vs. UNC Asheville, Saturday, Feb. 8 at 1:30 p.m., Jimmy Powell Tennis Center

• After competing in the ITA Weekend Kickoff tournament Jan. 24-25, the Phoenix comes home for the first time on the young season to play a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 8, at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center against Norfolk St. (9:30 a.m.) and UNC Asheville (1:30 p.m.).
• Elon comes in having topped the Samford Bulldogs 4-2 last weekend in consolation match of the ITA Kickoff Weekend tournament in Charlottesville, Va. The match was a rematch of the 2013 Southern Conference Tournament final last April, one in which the Bulldogs edged the Phoenix, 4-3.
• Elon currently sits No. 45 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) national rankings, which is up 19 spots from the preseason rankings released at the beginning of January. The jump was helped in large part because of a 4-3 upset of No. 7 Duke in the opening match of the season Friday, Jan. 17.

Softball
Charleston Southern Tournament
Elon vs. UNC Wilmington, Saturday, Feb. 8, at 9 a.m., North Charleston, S.C.
Elon vs. UMES, Saturday, Feb. 8, at 11 a.m., North Charleston, S.C.
Elon vs. UMES, Sunday, Feb. 9, at 1 p.m., North Charleston, S.C.
Elon at Charleston Southern, Sunday, Feb. 9, at 3 p.m., North Charleston, S.C.

• The Elon softball team opens its season at the Charleston Southern Tournament this weekend, Feb. 8-9, versus UNC Wilmington, Maryland Eastern Shore and host Charleston Southern.
• The Phoenix returns all but three players to its team from a year ago including senior Carleigh Nester who was named to the 2014 All-Southern Conference Preseason first team along with sophomore Emily Cameron. Fellow seniors Lauren Oldham and Johanna Spencer also received All-SoCon preseason accolades after being selected to the league’s second team.
• Elon head coach Kathy Bocock begins her third year at the helm of the Phoenix softball program. She has produced 45 wins in her first two seasons as coach, the most of any coach in program history in their first two years.

Women’s Basketball (8-11, 4-4 SoCon)
Elon Basketball Live, Tuesday, Feb. 4, at 6:30 p.m., Mellow Mushroom (Burlington)
Play 4Kay
Elon vs. Georgia Southern, Saturday, Feb. 8, at 4 p.m., Alumni Gym (ESPN3)

• Elon rebounded after a tough road weekend a week ago with a commanding 80-57 victory over UNCG on Saturday. Zora Stephenson was unstoppable for the Phoenix in the second half, scoring 16 of her total 18 points in the second frame. Elon also had three other players in double figures – Lauren Brown, Jessica Farmer and Kelsey Harris.
• The Phoenix remains home in Alumni Gym this weekend as it hosts Georgia Southern on Saturday in the first part of an Elon basketball doubleheader. The game will be broadcasted live on ESPN3.
• The game against GSU will be Elon’s annual Play 4Kay game. All fans are encouraged to wear pink and there will be representatives on site from the Play 4Kay organization. Free pink logo Elon shirts will be given away to students.

Women’s Lacrosse
Elon at Duke, Friday, Feb. 7, at 3 p.m., Durham, N.C.

• The Elon women’s lacrosse program begins its first season of competition on Friday at Duke.
• The 2014 Phoenix squad features two seniors, two sophomores and 21 freshmen.
• Both Elon lacrosse coaches have Blue Devil connections. Head coach Josh Hexter was an associate head and assistant coach at Duke for eight seasons, while assistant coach Virginia Crotty played for the Blue Devils from 2008-11.

Women’s Tennis (0-4)
Elon vs. Norfolk St., Saturday, Feb. 8, at 9:30 a.m., Jimmy Powell Tennis Center
Elon vs. North Carolina Central, Saturday, Feb. 8, at 2 p.m., Jimmy Powell Tennis Center

• Elon comes home for the first time this season for a doubleheader at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center Saturday, Feb. 8, against Norfolk St. (9:30 a.m.) and North Carolina Central (2 p.m.).
• Elon’s first four matches of the year all came against ranked opponents, including matches against No. 3 North Carolina and No. 4 Georgia. In the consolation match of the ITA Kickoff Weekend tournament in Athens, Ga. on Saturday, Jan. 25, the Phoenix battled No. 55 Kansas St. to the wire, but ultimately fell 4-3.
• Barbora Lazarova is the only Elon player to have a personal record of .500 or better through the first four matches. The junior from Slovakia posted Elon’s only point in the season opener against Virginia Tech, then earned a win against last weekend against the Wildcats.

Women’s Track and Field
Elon at High Point Invitational, Thursday, Feb. 6, Winston-Salem, N.C.

• The Phoenix travels to the JDL Fast Track Indoor Complex again for the High Point Invitational in Winston-Salem, N.C., on Thursday, Feb. 6.
• Elon competed last weekend at the prestigious Penn State National Invitational for the second straight season. Senior Allyson Oram broke her own school-record in the 5,000-meters with a time of 17:14.44, finishing second overall and as the top collegiate runner in the event.
• Redshirt freshman Elyse Bierut recorded the second-fastest performance in school history in the 5,000-meters with a time of 17:38.98 last weekend. Sophomore Jennifer Esposito had the third-best performance in program history in the 400-meters with a time of 58.06, while freshman Kimberly Johansen also recorded the third-best performance in school history in her event, the 800-meters, with a time of 2:14.82.