ELON, N.C. – Elon University women's tennis returns to action on Wednesday, Jan. 22, against Duke and Belmont Abbey. Those matchups are slated to take place in Durham, N.C., at 3 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. respectively.

THE SERIES
- Wednesday marks the fifth time that Elon and Duke will meet in a regular season matchup, with Duke currently leading the all-time series 4-0.
- In the most recent meeting, the Blue Devils defeated the Phoenix, 7-0, on Jan. 23, 2019
- In the second half of Wednesday's double-header, Elon will take on Belmont Abbey for the first time in program history.

ABOUT ELON
- The Phoenix is off to an 1-2 start to the season, after defeating North Carolina A&T, 7-0, in its most recent outing.
- In the match, Elon was led by Alex Koniaev, who combined with Uma Nayar to earn a doubles win (6-0) over Renata Ruiz and Marlene Estenssoro before defeating Ruiz in straight sets (6-1, 6-3) in singles play.
- Elon returned 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 213 career victories.
 
SCOUTING DUKE
- Duke is in its 24^th season under the watchful eye of head coach William Crutchfield, who led the program to an NCAA Championship in 2009
- The program posted a 27-4 overall record in 2018-19 season.
- Duke boasts a roster that includes five returners from last season's squad. Coming in with the highest Blue Devil ranking is junior Kelly Chen, locking in at No. 10. Rookie Chloe Beck earned Duke's second-highest ranking at No. 25. Sophomore Margaryta Bilokin and senior Meible Chi round out Duke's singles players with Bilokin at No. 67 and Chi at No. 77.
 
SCOUTING BELMONT ABBEY
- Belmont Abbey is led by third-year head coach Michael Salomon
- The program posted a 10-14 overall record in 2018-19 season.
- Belmont Abbey returns eight players from last year's squad, while adding five new faces for this year's campaign.

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
Following this week's double-header against Duke and Belmont Abbey, the Phoenix will return to action on Saturday, Jan. 15, to take on Presbyterian and Mount Olive respectively. That matchup is slated to begin at 11 a.m. in Elon, N.C.