ELON – The Elon women's tennis team hits the courts for its spring debut Friday as the Phoenix heads south to face Charlotte at 1 p.m. 

Elon vs. Charlotte Briefing
Match Details: Jan. 16, 2026 | Charlotte, N.C. | Lifetime Fitness | 1 p.m.
Admission: Free  
Live Scoring: StatBroadcast
Elon Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Stats
Charlotte Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Stats
 
The Matchup

• Charlotte holds a slight 11-7 edge in the all-time series. The 49ers have won their last three meetings against the Phoenix.
• The 49ers topped Elon, 4-0, last season at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center on Feb. 14. The Phoenix last played at Charlotte on Feb. 25, 2023, losing 0-4.
• Elon's last victory against Charlotte came on March 18, 2016, when the Phoenix won, 6-1.
• The Phoenix is 1-7 all-time against the 49ers in matches played at Charlotte. The lone triumph came in 2009.

 
About The Phoenix

• Elon won its first ever CAA championship in the spring, winning the CAA Tournament at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center with a victory over three-time defending champion William & Mary in the final.
• The Phoenix earned the CAA's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and faced No. 10 Tennessee in the opening round. Elon finished the season with a 19-6 overall record, which included a 15-2 mark at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center.
• Simone Bergeron returns for her junior season after a breakout campaign last spring that saw her take home CAA Women's Tennis Player of the Year. Bergeron went 12-9 playing No. 1 singles and clinched Elon's CAA title with her three-set victory against William & Mary. She also went 20-4 in doubles and earned First Team All-CAA recognition in both doubles and singles.
• Bergeron's primary doubles partner last season was Mariana Reding, who also earned First Team All-CAA honors in doubles. Reding, who returns this season as a junior, went 16-6 playing Nos. 2-4 singles and won 18 doubles contests alongside Bergeron in the spring.
• Senior Helen Sarikulaya also received All-CAA recognition in both singles (Third Team) and doubles (Second Team). She won 12 singles matches, eight of which came at the No. 2 spot, to go along with 13 victories in doubles.
• Lisa Kranec earned All-CAA Second Team recognition in doubles after tallying 12 wins alongside Sarikulaya. She also posted 17 singles victories in her freshman campaign, with 13 coming at the No. 6 spot.
• Also back for the Phoenix is senior Madison Cordisco, who finished second on the team last season with 17 singles triumphs. She went 14-4 at the No. 5 position.
• Elon welcomes three newcomers this season – Cornelia Kack, Alexis Nyborg and Nathalie Marinovitch.
• Kack joined the Phoenix after earning All-CAA Third Team honors in doubles last season as a freshman at Delaware. Nyborg came to Elon following two successful seasons at UNC Asheville, where she earned All-Big South First Team honors in singles in 2025. Marinovitch, a native of Cochabama, Bolivia, is Elon's lone freshman.
• Elon is led by reigning CAA Coach of the Year Elizabeth Anderson, who is in her 22nd season leading the Phoenix. She is joined by first-year assistant coach Allie Gretkowski, who played college tennis at South Carolina and Louisville.

 
Fall Recap

• The Phoenix racked up 93 total victories across singles and doubles in five tournaments this fall.
• Sarikulaya paced the Phoenix with 19 total wins across singles and doubles. She won 10 of her 11 singles contests and added nine doubles decisions.
• Five more Phoenix won at least eight singles matches this fall – Kranec (9), Bergeron (8), Cordisco (8), Kack (8) and Nyborg (8).
• Kack led Elon with a 10-1 doubles record, with Kranec joining Sarikulaya with nine doubles triumphs apiece.
• Bergeron was the first Elon player to represent the CAA at ITA Conference Masters, going 2-2 in singles at the event, which was held in San Diego from Nov. 6-9.
• Elon hosted its last of three fall tournaments, the Phoenix Fall Invitational, at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center on Nov. 1-2. Bergeron and Reding won the doubles competition with 12 points after going 3-0 in doubles over the weekend. In total, the Phoenix went 10-1 in doubles during the event.
• Kranec (6-0), Sarikulaya (6-0) and Cordisco (5-0) all finished the Phoenix Fall Invitational unbeaten across singles and doubles.
• Elon competed at ITA Carolina Regionals on Oct. 16-19. North Carolina hosted the event at the Chewning Tennis Center. Bergeron, Nyborg and Sarikulaya all made the main draw for singles, with four Elon doubles teams competing in the main draw.
• The Phoenix finished Regionals with 12 total wins across the qualifying and main draws. Elon won two main draw doubles matches.
• Elon hosted the Elon Fall Invitational from Oct. 3-4 at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center, compiling 27 wins across singles and doubles in its second home event, with 18 in singles and nine in doubles.
• Nyborg won the singles competition at the Elon Fall Invitational with 16 points after a 3-0 weekend. Kack teamed up with Kranec to win the doubles competition following a 3-0 tournament together.
• The Phoenix opened its fall season on Sept. 19-20 by hosting the Jimmy Powell Invitational.
• Elon totaled 31 victories across doubles and singles, with 19 on Friday and 12 on Saturday. The Phoenix went 10-2 in doubles and 21-3 in singles over the weekend, losing just nine sets in those 24 singles contests.
• Bergeron and Reding won the doubles competition with 12 points, going 3-0 over the weekend. Bergeron also shared the singles title with 12 points after posting a 2-1 mark.
• Kack, Nyborg, Kranec, Cordisco and Sarikulaya all finished the event with a perfect 3-0 record in singles. Cordisco and Kack also went 3-0 as a doubles pair to finish the weekend 6-0 overall.

 
Super Simone

• Bergeron had a prolific sophomore campaign, becoming the first Elon player to win both CAA Player of the Year and CAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player.
• She picked up 20 doubles victories in her sophomore campaign, tied for the third most in a season by an Elon player.
• All 12 of Bergeron's singles victories last spring came at the No. 1 position, which included the CAA title clinching win against William & Mary.
• Bergeron has compiled 57 dual wins across singles and doubles in her first two campaigns with the Phoenix. She has won at least 12 matches in both singles and doubles in each season.
• This fall, Bergeron was selected as the CAA's singles representative at ITA Conference Masters. She was the first Elon player to compete at the event.

 
Senior Leaders

• Cordisco and Sarikulaya both enter their senior season looking to climb up Elon's all-time record books.
• Sarikulaya begins the spring with 34 career dual singles victories, needing nine to reach the top 15 in career dual singles wins for the Phoenix. Sarikulaya has posted 11 or more singles wins in each of her first three seasons with Elon.
• Sarikulaya has also collected 27 dual doubles victories in her Elon career and is coming off a career-high 13 doubles wins last spring.
• Cordisco comes into her senior spring with 31 career dual doubles wins and is just three away from entering the top 15 in Elon's program history. She is coming off a career-best season in singles that saw her go 17-4.
• In their first three seasons, Cordisco and Sarikulaya have been part of 66 team victories with the Phoenix. Elon has won 67% of its matches over the past three years with Cordisco and Sarikulaya on the team.

 
Key Returners

• Also back from Elon's CAA championship team is Kranec and Reding, who both played pivotal roles for the Phoenix a season ago.
• Reding partnered Bergeron for 18 wins in doubles to earn her first All-CAA First Team selection. She also won 16 singles decisions last spring, including a three-set victory to clinch a regular-season victory over William & Mary.
• Reding has 31 dual singles and doubles victories through her first two seasons with the Phoenix and is 62-25 in dual matches.
• As a freshman last spring, Kranec posted 17 singles victories and 12 doubles wins, earning All-CAA accolades in doubles.
• Kranec had a 10-match winning streak in singles last season that spanned over a month from February 8 to March 18. She also delivered a singles victory in Elon's CAA championship victory against William & Mary.

 
The Anderson Era

• Head coach Elizabeth Anderson is entering her 22nd season leading the maroon and gold. 
• Anderson has turned Elon into a consistent winner. Under her guidance, the Phoenix has posted 19 consecutive winning seasons, all of which have included double-digit victories. 
• Since joining the CAA in the 2014-15 season, Elon has won at least one match in all 10 of its CAA Tournament appearances. Anderson led the program to the CAA championship match for the first time in 2022 and its first CAA title in 2025 to earn an NCAA Tournament bid.
• In Elon's final season in the Southern Conference, Anderson led the maroon and gold to the program's first NCAA Tournament berth in 2013. The Phoenix won its first Southern Conference championship that season to qualify. 
• Since taking over as head coach in 2005, Anderson has tallied 308 victories at Elon. Her winning percentage is 62% in 497 career matches. 
• Anderson was named CAA Coach of the Year in 2025, the second time in her career she earned the honor.
• Elon has also been a strong performer in the classroom during Anderson's tenure. The program has earned All-ITA Academic Team honors in 20 consecutive seasons. 

 
Scouting Charlotte

• The 49ers are coming off a stellar 23-6 spring season in 2025 which featured a 16-2 home record.
• Charlotte was selected for the UTR NIT Championship a season ago, falling in the title match to Washington State after winning a pair of matches against Saint Mary's and North Alabama.
• Ni Xi enters the spring season ranked No. 72 by the ITA. She won 12 matches this fall after going 14-6 in singles last spring, with all of the wins coming at the top two spots.
• Xi and Sara Suchankova are also the No. 47 ranked doubles team by the ITA. The duo won seven contests together this fall.
• Lucia Aranda returns for the 49ers after leading the team with 19 dual singles victories last season. She went 11-1 at No. 3 singles and added seven wins at the No. 4 spot.
• Prisca Abbas (14), Shona Nakano (12) and Suchankova (12) also return for Charlotte after reaching double-digit singles wins last spring.
• Charlotte is led by head coach Anthony Davison, who is in his ninth season leading the program. He is a Charlotte graduate and was named the 2024 ITA Carolina Region Coach of the Year.

 
Stay Posted   
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