ELON, N.C. – The Elon University softball team hosts its second Power 5 opponent of the season as the Phoenix welcomes No. 19 Michigan to Hunt Softball Park on Monday, Feb. 28. The opening pitch is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.
 
Follow the Phoenix
• Live stats will be available for the game by going to the team's schedule page at elonphoenix.com.
• Updates will also be posted on Twitter at the team's account @ElonSoftball.
• Monday's game will stream live FloSoftball via a paid subscription.
 
Series Breakdown
• Monday will be the first-ever meeting on the softball diamond between Elon and Michigan. Michigan will be the first of two teams that the Phoenix will face from the Big Ten conference with Elon hosting Michigan State later this weekend at its home tournament, the Cardinal Invite.
• Under head coach Kathy Bocock, Elon has only played one game versus a current member of the Big Ten conference, facing Ohio State in 2013 in Athens, Ga.
 
Last Time Out
• Elon played St. Bonaventure in a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 26. The Phoenix was able to take both games over the Bonnies, earning an 8-0 win in game one before closing out the twin bill with a 4-2 victory.
• In the opening game, Gabi Schaal went 3-for-3 with two doubles and her second home run of the season while driving in a pair of runs. Freshman Isley Duggins improved to 3-1 on the season in the circle after pitching 4.0 hitless innings with three strikeouts.
• Megan Grant matched Schaal's performance in the second game by going 3-for-3 and adding her fourth triple of the season and an RBI.
• McKenna McCard was credited with the win in the circle after pitching 2.0 scoreless innings in relief while striking out four batters.
• The two teams were originally scheduled to play a three-game set this weekend, but the series finale on Sunday was canceled due to weather.
 
Home Sweet Home
• The Phoenix is in a midst of a 10-game homestand and has played all but one of its 12 games at the home confines of Hunt Softball Park so far this season.
• In total, the Phoenix will play 36 total games on its home diamond in 2022. Elon will host its third and final regular season tournament this weekend, March 4-6, the Cardinal Invite.
• Elon will also look to continue its play on its field during the postseason as the Phoenix will host the 2022 Colonial Athletic Association Softball Championships.
 
Stiff Competition
• Michigan becomes the third team from a Power 5 conference that Elon will face so far this season after matchups with North Carolina and at No. 13 Duke. The Phoenix also has contests versus NC State (March 2) and Michigan State (March 4-5 and March 13) remaining on its schedule.
• The Wolverines are the second team from the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll that the Phoenix has faced this year so far along with No. 13 Duke.
 
Around the Horn
• Elon registered 10 hits for the second time this season in its 8-0 victory over St. Bonaventure on Saturday. The Phoenix had a season-high 11 hits versus Providence on Feb. 18 and is 2-0 this season when registering double-digit hits.
• The Phoenix has gotten off to a fast start opening games as Elon plates 12 runs in the opening frame compared to four allowed to its opponents. The maroon and gold also puts up a 9-1 run advantage in the second inning.
• Offensively, Elon is hitting .232 with two players – Rebecca Murray (.406) and Grant (.364) – hitting better than .300. Murray still sits in the top-10 of CAA in batting average, slugging percentage (.656), on-base percentage (.513), hits (13), doubles (three) and stolen bases (seven).
• Grant still leads the CAA in triples (four) and walks (nine) while also in the top-five of the league in on-base percentage (.500).
• Schaal has been the main run producer for the Phoenix so far this season with her 11 RBI and two home runs. The Lakeland, Fla., native has picked up her play as of late, hitting .556 (5-for-9) with two doubles, six RBI and a 1.111 slugging percentage in the past three games.
• The Phoenix continues to rely on its seven-member pitching staff with six of them seeing action in the past three games. As a unit, Elon has a 2.59 ERA with 67 strikeouts against 35 walks.
• Two players – McKenzie Weber (0.00) and Duggins (1.58) sit in the CAA top-10 in ERA with the duo also ranking first and second in opposing batting average with Weber at .172 and Duggins at .175.
• Taylor Cherry has seen the most action for the Phoenix, pitching a team-high 27.0 innings. The rookie has a 2-1 record with a 3.37 ERA and has 30 strikeouts, good for fourth in the CAA.
• Kathy Bocock is in her 11th season at the helm of the Elon softball program. She has amassed 490 career victories with 242 of those coming at Elon.
 
Scouting No. 19 Michigan
• The Wolverines enter Monday's contest with an 8-5 overall record after going 3-1 at the Duke Invitational on Thursday through Saturday. Michigan defeated Northern Kentucky, 14-1, in its final game of the tournament on Saturday.
• Offensively, Michigan is hitting .259 as a team this season with four regulars hitting .300 or better in its lineup. Graduate student Kristina Burkhardt is hitting .465 with 20 hits, seven doubles and 12 RBI.
• In the circle, three pitchers have seen more than 12 innings in the circle with senior Alex Storako being the staff workhorse this season with her team-high 47.1 innings. Storako has a 7-0 record with an ERA of 1.04 with 79 strikeouts.
• Michigan is led by head coach Carol Hutchins, who is in her 38^th season leading the Wolverines softball program. Hutchins recently again became the most winningest coach in NCAA softball history at the Duke Invitational, registering 1,677 wins as a collegiate head coach.
 
On Deck
The Phoenix hosts its second ACC in-state foe this season, welcoming NC State to Elon on Wednesday, March 2. That game is scheduled for a 4:30 p.m. start time.