ELON – The Elon men's soccer team (8-2-4, 2-1-3 CAA) hosts No. 20 UNCW (9-2-1, 5-0-0 CAA) at Rudd Field on Saturday night. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Prior to the match, Elon will honor its nine-man graduating class in a Senior Night ceremony.
Elon vs. No. 20 UNCW Briefing
Match Details: Oct. 17 | Elon, N.C. | Rudd Field | 7 p.m.
Watch: FloCollege
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Admission: Free
Elon Links: News |
Roster |
Schedule |
Stats |
Game Program
UNCW Links: News |
Roster |
Schedule |
Stats
The UNCW Series
- Elon holds a 9-7-3 advantage in the head-to-head against the Seahawks. UNCW defeated the Phoenix in Wilmington last month.
- This will be the 14th meeting between the teams as CAA opponents. The Phoenix is 6-5-2 in their matches as conference rivals.
- Last season, the Phoenix defeated UNCW at Rudd in a dramatic one-goal game. Charlie Kitch scored in the final minutes to help the Phoenix prevail, 1-0.
- Elon is 6-1-1 against the Seahawks at Rudd. UNCW's only win over the Phoenix at Elon came in 2018.
Senior Night
Elon Storylines
- Unbeaten Streak: The Phoenix is unbeaten in its last 10 matches, going 7-0-3 in that stretch. Elon has not lost a match since Sept. 5 at UNCW.
- Back-To-Back: Joe Taylor won consecutive CAA Defensive Player of the Week honors on Sept. 28 and Oct. 5 after scoring game-winning goals for the Phoenix against Duke and William & Mary. The defender was also included on the TopDrawer Soccer Team of the Week on Sept. 29.
- Dom-inating: Dominik Renz has vaulted into the conference lead for both goals (9) and points (22) with five goals and 12 points over the last three contests. He scored his first career hat trick Oct. 6 against Guilford and added a goal against both College of Charleston and Longwood. The reigning CAA Rookie of the Year has scored a goal in three of Elon's last four conference matches.
- Oscar-Worthy Performance: Oscar Tonidandel has racked up nine points in Elon's last nine matches. The midfielder is second to only Renz on the Phoenix with 12 points and is tied for the CAA lead with eight assists. Tonidandel also has a pair of goals this season, with both coming from the penalty circle.
- Give Him His Flowers: Jahmir Flowers has already set a career high in goals with four in his nine appearances this season. The senior is third on the Phoenix with nine points, another career best.
- Goalie Rotation: Elon has rotated goalies throughout the season. Drew Hartman has started 10 times, including all six of Elon's CAA contests. Mikolaj Lenarcik has made four starts, posting clean sheets in each of his two home nods. Lenarcik became the first Phoenix goalkeeper since 2015 to register an assist in the victory over Radford on Sept. 15.
- Nonconference Success: Elon is 6-1-1 this season against nonconference opponents. The Phoenix will play one more nonconference match against Wake Forest on Oct. 24.
- Iron Man Streak: Magnus Jacobsen played the first 1,035 minutes of the season for the Phoenix before finally subbing off for the first time Oct. 6 against Guilford. The sophomore defender has two goals on the campaign, scoring in Elon's most recent match against Longwood.
- Offensive Production: Elon has scored multiple goals in nine of its 14 matches this season. The Phoenix's 34 goals are five more than the next best CAA team. The 34 goals have come from 15 different scorers, with nine different Phoenix netting multiple goals. Elon leads the CAA with a plus-20 goal differential on the season.
- Six-Seven: Elon's Nos. 6 and 7 are both having career best scoring seasons, as both Weston Jonke and Jordin Wilson have seven points on the campaign. Wilson has scored a goal in two of the last three matches while Jonke has a pair of goals to go along with a trio of assists.
- Captain Martin: Martin Kozak has six points in 10 appearances this season. The reigning CAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player has two goals and a pair of assists on the campaign, including a penalty kick strike in Elon's CAA road win at William & Mary on Oct. 3. He was named to the Hermann Trophy Preseason Watch List in August.
- Dazza Delivering: Daire McCarthy has assisted in three of the last five contests, including in Elon's conference victory against William & Mary. The midfielder also has points in four of seven contests after scoring his first Phoenix goal Sept. 22 at Davidson. McCarthy has logged the full 90 minutes in nine of the last 10 matches.
- Ben Assisting: Ben Madore has racked up six assists in the last three matches to vault into solo second on the Phoenix in helpers. The midfielder tied Elon's program record with four assists in the win against Guilford on Oct. 6 and added two more against Longwood on Tuesday.
- Home Sweet Home: Elon remains unbeaten at Rudd Field this season with a 4-0-3 record. The Phoenix has won or tied its last 17 home matches, a streak that began with last fall's home opener.
- Down Goes Duke: Elon earned its first ever road win against Duke on Sept. 25 downing the Blue Devils in Durham, 1-0. Taylor scored the lone goal of the match with Hartman pitching a clean sheet in goal.
- CAA Praise: Elon was tabbed to finish first in the CAA South Division preseason poll. The Phoenix also had four preseason All-CAA honorees – Martin Kozak, Magnus Jacobsen, Weston Jonke and Renz. Additionally, Ben Madore was named a preseason All-CAA honorable mention.
- CAA South Status: Elon enters Saturday night second in the South Division standings. The Phoenix is one point ahead of Charleston for third place and two points ahead of fourth-place William & Mary. The Seahawks can clinch the CAA South regular season title with one point on Saturday.
Last Time Out
- Elon played Longwood to a 2-2 tie Tuesday night at Rudd to push its unbeaten streak to 10 matches.
- Renz and Jacobsen scored Elon's goals with both coming in the first half. The Lancers erased two separate one-goal deficits to secure a draw.
- Renz's goal was Elon's third time scoring in the opening 10 minutes in the last six matches.
- Madore and Tønnes Daland assisted on Renz's goal with Madore and Renz setting up Jacobsen's, which came on a header.
- Daland went the full 90 minutes on Elon's back line to go along with his first point since Aug. 24. Joining the defender in going the distance in the field was Jonke, Madore and McCarthy.
- Elon outshot Longwood in the contest, 14-10. Jonke attempted a game-high four shots with nine different Phoenix registering at least one.
Reigning Champs
- Elon earned its first CAA Tournament crown last fall, winning the title on its home field.
- The Phoenix finished atop the CAA South Division in the regular season to receive a bye into the semifinal round of the conference tournament.
- In its semifinal match against Campbell, the Phoenix exploded for six goals in a 6-4 victory, the most goals for Elon in a match since 2018. Six different Phoenix converted a goal in the match.
- Elon netted three more goals in the championship match against Stony Brook at Rudd, blanking the Seawolves 3-0 to secure the title and an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.
- Kozak paced the Phoenix with eight points in the CAA Tournament, netting two goals and adding four assists to earn Most Outstanding Player honors.
- The Phoenix made its sixth appearance in the NCAA Tournament, going out to UNCG in penalty kicks after the teams played to a scoreless draw in Greensboro.
Scouting UNCW
- The Seahawks are 9-2-1 this season and are a perfect 5-0-0 in CAA South matches.
- UNCW is currently ranked No. 20 in the United Soccer Coaches poll and No. 22 in the TopDrawer Soccer poll. This will be the first ranked opponent Elon faces this season.
- The Seahawks swept all four CAA South opponents in their first trip around the division and defeated Campbell in their last outing to make it five wins in five conference contests.
- UNCW has the best scoring defense in the South Division, conceding just 12 goals on the campaign. Only Hofstra has allowed fewer goals among CAA teams.
- Cameron Keay is UNCW's leading scorer with 15 points and six goals through 12 games. He was named CAA Offensive Player of the Week on Monday and selected to the TopDrawer Soccer Team of the Week on Tuesday.
- Lucas Siikala (3), Bryan Miralrio (3), Christian Acevedo (2) and Jake Roberts (2) also have multiple goals for the Seahawks.
- Benjamin Gooding is pacing UNCW with five assists with Osei Gyamfi and Kieran Radke close behind with four apiece.
- Alex Kron and Trey Smiley have shared UNCW's net this season. Kron has made eight starts, including the most recent match against the Camels. He has a 1.00 goals against average with a 0.771 save percentage.
- The Seahawks are led by head coach Aidan Heaney, who is in his 26th season at the helm of the program.
Stay Posted
For further coverage of Elon men's soccer, follow the Phoenix on X (@ElonMSoccer), Instagram (elonmsoccer) and Facebook (Elon Men's Soccer).
