RICHMOND, Va. – Elon University women’s lacrosse junior defender Alexis Zadjura was tabbed CAA Defensive Player of the Week on Tuesday, Feb. 14, for the first time in her career.
Zadjura led Elon’s defensive effort with two caused turnovers and two ground balls while picking up three draw controls in the Phoenix’s 11-10 upset win on the road against No. 13/14 Virginia on Saturday, Feb. 11. In the game, Zadjura and the Elon defense went up against three of Virginia’s top four returning goal scorers from the 2016 season and held all three to just two goals apiece.
Saturday’s victory marked Elon’s second win over a nationally-ranked team in program history. It is the second year in a row the Phoenix has topped a ranked ACC side, defeating No. 10 Duke in Durham, N.C., last season, 7-6.
Now with a 2-0 record this season, Elon is receiving votes in the Cascade/IWLCA Media poll and checks in at No. 19 this week in the Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20. It marks the second time in program history the Phoenix is receiving votes in the Cascade poll.
Other weekly lacrosse honors Tuesday include Becky Gohsler of Delaware named Player of the Week and Sami Chenoweth of Towson named Rookie of the Week.
Zadjura and the Phoenix will open a three-game homestand on Wednesday evening, Feb. 15, at 6 p.m. against Winthrop. The matchup is the first between the two programs but Elon has had great success against Big South opponents with an 11-3 mark, including wins in each of the last eight games.