ELON, N.C. – Elon University women's tennis opens its 2020 season on Saturday morning, Jan. 11, facing the No. 2-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels at 11 a.m. inside the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center. The Phoenix will then take on Charleston Southern at 10 a.m. on Jan. 12, in Chapel Hill, N.C.
 
THE SERIES (UNC)
- Saturday will be the 16th time Elon and UNC have faced each other.
- North Carolina leads the all-time series 15-0.
- Last season, Elon opened the 2016 campaign falling to the No. 3 Tar Heels, 6-1, on Jan. 12.
 
THE SERIES (CHARLESTON SOUTHERN)
- Sunday marks the ninth time that Elon and Charleston Southern will meet in a regular season matchup
- Elon trails in the all-time series 3-5
- In the most recent meeting, Elon defeated Charleston Southern 4-3 on April 8, 2018

ABOUT ELON
- Elon returns five players from a 2018-19 team that posted a 13-12 dual match record and finished its season falling to top seeded William & Mary 4-3 in the semifinals of the CAA Tournament at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center.
- The Phoenix is returning 2019 CAA Second-Team Singles selection Olivia Archer as well as 2019 CAA Second-Team Doubles selections Alex Koniaev, Nicole Shiau and Uma Nayar. In 2019, Archer went 17-4 in singles, while Koniaev combined with Maria Paraja to go 9-8 in No. 1 doubles and Nayar/Shiau finished 11-4 in No. 2 doubles.
- The Phoenix is led by head coach Elizabeth Anderson, who begins her 16th season at the helm for Elon. Anderson currently holds 212 career victories.
 
SCOUTING UNC
- The Tar Heels return seven players from last year's team that finished the campaign ranked No. 3 in the nation. UNC boasted a 33-2 overall record and won its fourth-consecutive ACC Championship. 
- Last season, UNC reached the Final Four for the third time in program history.
- The Tar Heels boast a senior laden squad that features No. 4 Sara Daavettila, No. 8 Alexa Graham and Makenna Jones – each of whom have been selected as an All-American on three separate occasions.
 
SCOUTING CHARLESTON SOUTHERN
- Charleston Southern is led by second-year head coach Anca Dumitrescu, a former Florida State tennis standout that graduated in 2014.
- The program posted an 8-11 overall record in 2018-19 season.
- Charleston Southern returns six athletes in Tyler Kirk, Madalina Man, Tiffany Pyritz, Michelle Schmitz, Femcke van Rensburg and Liz Williams, who accounted for 34 of the Bucs' 52 singles wins last season. The group was also responsible for 24 of the teams 32 Big South victories.

FRESH FACES
Elon University head women's tennis coach Elizabeth Anderson announced the additions of freshmen Kiana Rizzolo, Shauna Galvin and USC Upstate sophomore transfer Victoria Saldh for the 2019-20 season.

UP NEXT
The Phoenix hosts its home-opener on Tuesday, Jan. 14, against North Carolina A&T. That matchup is slated for 2 p.m. at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center.