Elon, N.C.- Scott Vatne found the back of the net twice in Elon's 3-1 win over Drexel Saturday afternoon. Vatne converted twice from set pieces to give the Elon Phoenix (5-0) their fifth straight win to begin the year.
 
For the second time this season, the Phoenix struck early twice with two goals in the first 87 seconds of the match. Colin Veltri continued his torrid pace with a goal in his third straight game. Veltri has at least a point in all five games and is now tied for the team lead in goals with three.
 
How It Happened

• Elon started fast within seconds when a ball found the feet of Ryan Manna in the box. Manna was taken down as he was looking to shoot and drew a penalty kick within 30 seconds.
• Scott Vatne stepped up to take the penalty and was able to bury the spot kick to give the Phoenix an early lead.
• Similarly to the game against Radford, Elon was able to swiftly reply to their first goal with another. Exactly a minute later, a ball into the box found the feet of Victor Stromsten who played through Colin Veltri who hit it first time and found the bottom left corner. Veltri's goal gave Elon a 2-0 lead less than 90 seconds into the match.
• Drexel would come out swinging after conceding two goals with a spell of chances and possession.
• The Dragons would capitalize on their opportunites, finding the back of the net to halve the Elon deficit with 13 minutes to go in the first 45.
• Coming out of the locker room, Elon regained the momentum with the play of Jordin Wilson and Jahmir Flowers providing some speed off the bench.
• After a yellow card infraction on the Dragons, Vatne stepped up to take a free kick from 25 yards out. Vatne curled a shot that began curving away from the keeper and snuck in under the crossbar to fire the Phoenix back up two.
• The teams continued to trade possessions and free kicks as the game began to get more physical as Drexel tried to get back into the game. The Phoenix was able to absorb the pressure until Elon busted through on a counterattack. Vatne was one-on-one with the keeper but was dragged down from behind. After the foul, a red card was awarded which forced the Dragons to play with 10 men.
• After the red card, Elon peppered the goal with shots after swarms of possession and the Phoenix saw out the game claiming a 3-1 victory.

 
Notes and Stats

• The Phoenix have started the season 5-0 following this afternoon's win over the Dragons.
• With the win over the Dragons, Elon has now won seven straight home games dating back to last season.
• Elon has won three of their last four matchups against Drexel including three straight wins at Rudd Field.
• Scott Vatne scored two goals against Drexel for his first career multi-goal game in his career. Vatne is now tied for the team lead in goals with three.
• Colin Veltri found the back of the net for the third time in three games as Veltri scored in his third straight game.
• Victor Stromsten now leads the team in assist with four after collecting another helper on Colin Veltri's goal. His assist gives him ten for his Elon career.
• Tomasz Wroblewski had four saves in the match to set a new season high.
• Elon has outscored their opponents 14-2 on the season and 11-2 at Rudd Field.
• The Phoenix picks up three points from their opening CAA game for the first time since 2021.

 
Up Next

• The Phoenix will hit the road for their first CAA road game against the Delaware Blue Hens. Elon and Delaware will kick off from Newark at 2 pm next Saturday.