ELON – The Elon women's lacrosse team (2-0) hopes to continue its unbeaten start Saturday when it travels to face East Carolina (1-1). The game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start.
Elon vs. ECU Briefing
Game Details: Feb. 21, 2026 | Greenville, N.C. | Johnson Stadium | 1 p.m.
The Matchup
- The Phoenix is 2-1 all-time against ECU, with all those meetings coming in the last three seasons.
- Elon has won two straight games against the Pirates after losing at ECU in 2023. It was the only meeting between the teams to come in Greenville.
- Elon defeated the Pirates, 12-7, last season at Rudd Field. The Phoenix outscored ECU 5-1 in the second half, with Ana Lee Vandiver netting a hat trick in the winning effort. Sammy Fisher, Mia Zebley and Danielle Swietoniowski all scored a pair of goals.
About The Phoenix
- Elon is coming off a 9-8 season in 2025 that included a second straight CAA Tournament berth.
- The Phoenix went 5-3 in CAA play to earn the No. 4 seed in the conference tournament before losing to eventual champion and top-seeded Stony Brook in the semifinals.
- Elon was tabbed to finish fourth in the CAA preseason poll behind just Stony Brook, Drexel and Towson.
- Elon returns four of its top six goal scorers from last season – Ana Lee Vandiver (39), Mia Zebley (15), Danielle Swietoniowski (15) and Lillian Austin (13).
- Austin and Swietoniowski both made the All-CAA Rookie Team a season ago. Austin finished third on the Phoenix with 15 points in conference play, while Swietoniowski finished close behind with 13 points.
- Reagan Kuehn is Elon's other returning All-CAA honoree from 2025, as the defender made the Second Team after leading the Phoenix with 23 caused turnovers and all Elon position players with 32 ground balls.
- The Phoenix also returns MJ Santa Barbara, its leader in draw controls last season. Her 9.91 draw controls per contest led the CAA.
- Other key returners include goalie Caitlin Walsh, who started all 17 games in net last season, making 108 saves, Jessie Penner and Eliza Ritter, who both caused double-digit turnovers, and Addie Gilner, who was one of eight Phoenix to net double-digit goals in 2025.
- Elon is led by head coach Josh Hexter, who is in his 13th season with the program. He has guided the Phoenix since its inaugural campaign in 2014 and is up to 90 wins leading the maroon and gold.
Last Time Out
- Elon used a second-half surge to defeat Old Dominion, 11-6, in its home opener at Rudd Field on Feb. 14.
- A 4-0 scoring run in the third quarter helped Elon build a commanding lead, as the Phoenix went ahead by as many as seven in the fourth quarter.
- Three different Elon players netted hat tricks in the victory – Vandiver, Swietoniowski and Anna Hackett. Vandiver also had two assists in a five-point effort.
- The Monarchs turned the ball over 19 times, with Elon causing 10 of those giveaways. Eliza Ritter forced a team-high four turnovers and also matched Kuehn with four ground balls.
- Freshman Lizzie Scalzo tallied two assists to finish her first week of college lacrosse with seven points.
- In goal, Caitlin Walsh stopped five Old Dominion shots while also grabbing a team-high five ground balls.
- Elon outshot Old Dominion, 26-16, and won both the ground ball (25-13) and draw control (11-7) battles.
Unbeaten Start
- Elon is 2-0 after opening its campaign with victories against Queens and Old Dominion.
- This is Elon's first 2-0 start since 2021 when the Phoenix won its first eight contests.
- With a win Saturday against the Pirates, the Phoenix would secure its fourth 3-0 start in program history. Elon has previously won its first three games in 2016, 2017 and 2021.
Scalzo's Sensational Debut
- Scalzo tied for a game-high five goals in her collegiate debut on Feb. 11 against Queens. The freshman scored a first-half hat trick before finding two more goals, including the game winner, after the break.
- Scalzo became the first Elon freshman to score five goals in her debut game since Stephanie Asher also scored five on Jan. 31, 2015, against Kennesaw State.
- The five goals by the rookie were also the most by any Phoenix freshman in a game since Vandiver had six against VCU on Feb. 17, 2024, as a redshirt freshman and the most by an Elon true freshman since Margaret Stephan netted five against Radford on March 7, 2021.
- Scalzo scored on five of her six shot attempts against the Royals, with all six shots being on target. She also scored the first free position goal of her career in the win.
- The attacker notched two more points against Old Dominion on Feb. 14 with a pair of assists.
Hack Is Back
- After missing the 2025 campaign due to injury, Hackett made her return to the field on Feb. 11 against Queens.
- In her first appearance since April 14, 2024, Hackett started in Elon's midfield and finished second on the Phoenix with four points.
- She scored her first goal in 669 days in the second quarter against the Royals before adding another in the fourth quarter. It was the 21st multi-goal effort of her career.
- Additionally, Hackett delivered a team-high two assists, both coming on Scalzo goals.
- Against Old Dominion on Feb. 14, Hackett netted her 13th career hat trick with three tallies against the Monarchs. She was one of three Elon players to record a hat trick in the contest, with two of her goals coming in the fourth quarter.
- Hackett's seven points through Elon's first two games are tied with Scalzo for the second most on the team.
Vandiver Leading The Way
- Vandiver leads the Phoenix through two games in goals (6), assists (3) and points (9).
- The redshirt junior is the only Elon player with hat tricks in each of the first two games, as she now has 12 in her career. She had a four-point outing against Queens before posting five points against Old Dominion.
- Three of Vandiver's six goals have come on free position shots, as she is 3-of-4 on attempts on the season.
- Vandiver is tied with Scalzo for a team-high nine shots on goal. She is also second on the team with five draw controls after serving as Elon's primary draw taker in the second half against the Monarchs.
MJ The History Maker
- Entering her junior season, Santa Barbara is already Elon's all-time leader in career draw controls and has re-written the Phoenix record books in several categories.
- With 272 career draw controls in her 30 career games, Santa Barbara is 77 clear of second place in program history. She has the top two single season draw control totals in program history with 151 in 2024 and 109 in 2025.
- She has also set the top two marks in program history for draw controls in a conference season, with 73 in CAA games in 2024 and 72 in 2025. The next highest total in a season is 35.
- With Santa Barbara on the draw, Elon has set new team records for draw controls in a season. The Phoenix secured a program-record 145 draw controls in 2024, Santa Barbara's freshman campaign, before accruing 127 in 2025, Santa Barbara's sophomore campaign. Those are the top two totals in program history, smashing the previous record of 79 set in 2022.
- Santa Barbara has also turned in the top-five single game draw control efforts in program history, highlighted by her program-best 16 last season against Queens.
- Santa Barbara's 9.29 career draw controls per game were the third most in NCAA history entering this season.
- Santa Barbara has secured double-digit draw controls in 14-of-30 career games.
Sophomore Scoring Duo
- Austin and Swietoniowski both look to build on stellar freshman campaigns this spring, as both were key contributors as rookies.
- Austin's 15 points in CAA play were tied for the third most by an Elon freshman in a single season, while Swietoniowski was close behind with 13 points in conference games.
- Austin and Swietoniowski both registered six assists in CAA play, tied for the third most in a conference season by freshmen in program history.
- Both Swietoniowski (22) and Austin (21) surpassed 20 points in their freshman seasons and were two of seven Phoenix to do so in 2025.
- Austin had a pair of game-winning goals in 2025, coming against Monmouth and William & Mary. She was one of three Phoenix players to have multiple on the campaign.
- Swietoniowski has four goals through Elon's first two games in 2026, highlighted by a hat trick against Old Dominion. Austin made her season debut against the Monarchs and scored a goal in the third quarter.
Brick Wall-sh
- Walsh has become a mainstay in net for the Phoenix, starting 48 career games in four seasons with the program, including each of the last 44 contests.
- The senior was named to the All-CAA Tournament Team last season. She made a season-high 12 saves in the CAA semifinals against Stony Brook.
- Walsh earned her first CAA Defensive Player of the Week honor last season on April 21 for her 10 saves and seven ground balls in wins against Towson and Queens.
- Walsh has made 100-plus saves in each of her first three seasons with the Phoenix and ranks second in program history in career saves (347).
- Walsh is second in program history with 22 career victories.
- Through Elon's first two games this season, Walsh has 14 saves, including a nine-stop effort in the season-opening win at Queens.
Preseason Accolades
- Kuehn and Vandiver were named to the Preseason All-CAA Team while Santa Barbara was picked as an honorable mention.
- Kuehn's 32 ground balls last season were the fourth most in a season in Elon history and the most by a defender. Her 23 caused turnovers were the sixth most in program history. She enters her junior season in the top 10 in both career ground balls (68) and caused turnovers (47) in program history.
- Vandiver is Elon's top returning scorer from last season, having set career highs in both points (51) and goals (39) in 2025. The 51 points were tied for the fourth most in a season in program history, while the 39 goals were tied for the fifth most by an Elon player in a season.
- Santa Barbara recorded a team-best 109 draw controls in just 11 games last season, the second most in the conference. Her 9.91 draw controls per game led the CAA and her 72 draw controls in conference games were the most in the league.
Scouting ECU
- The Pirates are 1-1 on the season after a win against Queens and a loss to Coastal Carolina to open the campaign.
- Saturday's game will be the last in an opening three-game homestand for the Pirates.
- Kayla Wilkes leads the Pirates with five goals on the season, which included a hat trick against the Chanticleers.
- Katelyn Sciafani and Riley Mathhiesen are tied for second on the Pirates with four goals each. Sciafani also leads ECU in points with her team-high five assists.
- Emma Magazu leads the Pirates with 13 ground balls through the first two games. She has 10 more ground balls than the next highest total on ECU.
- Bella Askey has eight draw controls to pace the Pirates while Wilkes leads ECU with five caused turnovers.
- Jaime Behar has started both games in goal this season for ECU, making 20 saves.
- ECU is coming off a 7-10 campaign in 2025 that included a 4-2 record in the American Athletic Conference.
- Head coach Brittany Dipper is in her third season leading the Pirates.
Stay Posted
For further coverage of Elon Lacrosse, follow the Phoenix on X and Instagram (@ElonWLAX).
--ELON--
