ELON – The Elon University volleyball team closes out its home schedule this weekend as the Phoenix (5-18, 3-9 CAA) welcomes UNCW (4-18, 3-9) to Schar Center for a pair of matches on Saturday and Sunday.
 
WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Saturday, Nov. 8 – vs. UNCW at 7 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 9 – vs. UNCW at 3 p.m.
 
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SENIOR WEEKEND

• Elon will celebrate Senior Day on Sunday, honoring its three-person class of Simrin Carlsen, Lindsey Harris and Clara Simmons. The Phoenix will recognize the trio prior to the match.

 
SERIES HISTORY (UNCW leads 26-21)

• UNCW holds a 26-21 advantage in the all-time series, though Elon enters the weekend having won two straight and eight of the last 10 meetings. As CAA in-state rivals, the Seahawks own a narrow 12-10 edge.
• Elon swept the season series last year, earning straight-set victories in both matches in Wilmington. The Phoenix tallied 72 kills and hit .249 across the two contests. Cameron Lanier averaged 3.67 kills per set with a .395 hitting percentage, while Clara Simmons added 2.67 kills per set.
• When the teams last met in Elon in 2023, UNCW took both matches, winning 3-0 in the opener and 3-2 in the finale.

 
LAST TIME OUT

• Elon traveled to Campbell last weekend, dropping both matches in straight sets.
• Simrin Carlsen led the Phoenix with 2.83 kills per set and a .268 hitting percentage, while Lanier contributed 14 total kills (2.33 per set). Catherine Rucker hit a team-best .389 with nine total kills.
• Defensively, Casey Brower paced the team with 26 digs over two matches, averaging 4.33 per set.

 
ELON AT A GLANCE

• Elon sits tied with UNCW at 3-9 in conference play, three games back of Stony Brook for the sixth and final CAA Tournament berth. Hofstra and Campbell share the top spot at 10-2, followed by Towson (11-3), Charleston (9-3), N.C. A&T (7-5) and Stony Brook (6-6).
• The Phoenix is hitting .168 as a team, averaging 11.2 kills and 10.5 assists per set while holding opponents to a .246 clip.
• Simmons leads Elon with 192 kills (2.63 per set) and ranks second with 212 points (2.90 per set). Carlsen follows with 186 kills (2.38 per set) and leads the team with 213 points while ranking 10th in the CAA in digs (3.19 per set). She has recorded nine double-doubles this season.
• Rucker ranks among the CAA leaders in both service aces per set (0.33) and hitting percentage (.288). April Rice sits 10th in the conference in assists per set (5.28).
• Now in its 54th season of competition and 27^th at the Division I level, Elon returned 10 letterwinners from last season, including three starters. The Phoenix also welcomed five newcomers in 2025, four freshmen and one transfer.
• Lanier earned 2025 Preseason All-CAA laurels with teammates Rucker and Caroline Berlekamp also getting preseason league recognition.
• Elon returned 61% of its kills, 25% of its assists, 35% of its digs and 62% of its points scored from 2024.

 
SCOUTING UNCW

• UNCW split its most recent CAA series against William & Mary, falling in straight sets in the opener before responding with a four-set victory in the finale.
• The Seahawks have totaled 749 kills this season, averaging 9.7 per set with a .120 hitting percentage. Hannah Forbes leads the offense with 2.47 kills per set and 204 total points.
• Olivia Heidel ranks eighth in the CAA with 5.70 assists per set. Marnie Ursem ranks second in the league in blocks per set (1.09), with Lilly Sullivan 10th at 0.75.
• UNCW is led by first-year head coach Lo Hoyer, who previously guided Indiana University of Pennsylvania to a 67-29 record and three straight NCAA Division II Tournament appearances from 2022-24.

 
WELCOME COACH TROY

• Elon head coach Matt Troy is in his first season with the Phoenix after six years leading Johns Hopkins, where he compiled a 151-17 record and captured the 2019 NCAA Division III national championship.
• Troy has a career record of 357-96 (.788) over 14 seasons at the Division III level, including a 66-match winning streak from 2019-21. He ranks among the top 10 all-time and active coaches in Division III history by win percentage.

 
ALL-AMERICAN NEW FACE

• Among the new faces for the Phoenix this season includes graduate student transfer Simrin Carlsen, an outside hitter from Edison, N.J. Carlsen arrives to the Phoenix after competing at Johns Hopkins from 2021-24, recording over 1,000 career kills under former Blue Jay and now current Elon coach Matt Troy.
• Carlsen posted a decorated career at Johns Hopkins, as she was a two-time AVCA All-American, earning First Team laurels in 2023 and Second Team accolades in 2024. She was also a two-time AVCA First Team All-Region V (2023, 2024).
• She was named Baltimore Regional Most Outstanding Player in the 2023 NCAA Tournament and earned Centennial Conference Player of the Year that same season.

 
HOME SWEET HOME

• Elon is in its eighth season playing at Schar Center, which seats 5,100 and serves as home to the Phoenix men's and women's basketball teams.
• Admission to all Elon home matches is free to all fans.

 
UP NEXT

• Elon concludes its 2025 regular season on the road at College of Charleston on Nov. 15-16.

 
STAY POSTED

• For further coverage of Elon volleyball, follow the Phoenix on X (@ElonVB) and Instagram (@ElonVB).