ELON – After having its four-match winning streak snapped Wednesday, the No. 74 Elon women's tennis team (7-3) is looking for a rebound Saturday against Furman (8-3).
The match will be Elon's first on the road since Feb. 17 and will begin at 11 a.m. at the Mickel Tennis Center in Greenville, South Carolina.
No. 74 Elon vs. Furman Briefing
Match Details: March 14, 2026 | Greensville, S.C. | Mickel Tennis Center | 11 a.m.
Admission: Free
The Matchup
- Friday will be the 19th all-time meeting between the former Southern Conference rivals.
- The Paladins hold a 15-3 advantage in the series and have won four straight matches against the Phoenix.
- Elon's last victory against Furman came in the 2014 SoCon Tournament. The Phoenix edged Furman, 4-3, in the semifinals on its way to the conference title.
- Furman defeated the Phoenix, 4-1, last season at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center. Lisa Kranec picked up Elon's lone point at No. 6 singles.
- Elon is 1-5 all-time against the Paladins in Greenville, with the one victory coming in 2013.
- The Phoenix has not defeated Furman since joining the CAA, with the Paladins winning all four matchups between the teams since 2017.
About The Phoenix
- Simone Bergeron is back 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 while also notching a 20-4 mark in doubles to earn 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, also a junior, went 16-6 playing Nos. 2-4 singles and won 18 doubles contests alongside Bergeron last spring.
- Senior Helen Sarikulaya also received All-CAA recognition in both singles (Third Team) and doubles (Second Team) last spring.
- Lisa Kranec earned All-CAA Second Team recognition in doubles after tallying 12 wins alongside Sarikulaya. She posted 17 singles victories in her freshman campaign, anchoring the bottom half of Elon's lineup.
- 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 Cochabamba, Bolivia, is Elon's lone freshman.
- Elon won its first ever CAA championship last 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.
- 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.
Last Time Out
- Elon had its four-match winning streak snapped Wednesday in a ranked matchup against No. 66 South Alabama at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center. It was the final match of a season-long five-match homestand.
- The Phoenix won a crucial doubles point with wins at the Nos. 1 and 3 spots.
- Kack and Kranec continued their success at No. 3 doubles, winning 6-2 against Ava Rath and Jade Marie.
- In the final match to finish, Bergeron and Reding clinched the opening point for the Phoenix with a 6-4 victory over Kenza Elakili and Manal Ennaciri on Court 1, breaking serve on a deciding deuce point.
- Kack made it 2-0 for Elon with a convincing 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 2 singles over Ennaciri.
- The Jaguars won the next two matches to even the score at 2-2.
- Reding restored Elon's lead with a three-set victory on Court 3. The junior recovered from dropping the opening set to complete a 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 comeback.
- South Alabama won a pair of deciding sets on Courts 4 and 5 to earn the victory.
Phoenix In The ITA Rankings
- Elon was ranked for the second straight week on Tuesday, checking in at No. 74.
- The Phoenix entered the rankings on March 3 at No. 58, the highest ranking in Elon's Division I history, beating the previous best mark of No. 59 from the poll on March 5, 2013.
- Elon's ranking on March 3 was its first since Jan. 6, 2015, when the Phoenix held the 75th and final spot in the standings.
- Elon is the only CAA team in this week's edition of the rankings and was the first team from the conference to be ranked this season.
Mar-velous
- Reding leads the Phoenix with 15 victories this spring across singles and doubles.
- The junior is on a five-match winning streak in both singles and doubles, with all five doubles triumphs coming alongside Bergeron.
- Reding did not drop a match in Elon's five-match homestand, winning all 10 of her doubles and singles contests. She was the only Phoenix to go 10-0 during the homestand.
- Reding's eight singles victories are the most on the Phoenix, with all the wins coming at the No. 3 spot.
- Reding has won eight of her last nine singles matches and 16 of her last 19 singles sets. Her only loss in that stretch came against No. 3 North Carolina.
- Reding was named CAA Player of the Week on March 3 after going 6-0 overall in Elon's sweeps against North Carolina A&T, Wofford and Davidson.
- The CAA Player of the Week nod was the second of Reding's career, as she previously received the honor on Jan. 28, 2025.
Kack Attack
- Kack's Elon career is off to a prolific start, as the sophomore is second on the Phoenix in total wins this spring (14).
- Kack earned CAA Co-Player of the Week honors on Feb. 17 after a dominant stretch in which she posted multiple singles and doubles wins for the Phoenix.
- Against No. 3 North Carolina on Feb. 17, Kack took a set off Oby Kajuru, the No. 7-ranked player in the ITA standings, pushing the nationally ranked Tar Heel to three sets at the No. 2 singles position.
- Kack has also formed one of Elon's most reliable doubles pairings alongside Kranec, with the duo tied for the team lead in doubles wins this spring (7).
- All seven of Kack's singles wins have come at the No. 2 position, with six coming in straight sets. She has been ruthless in singles, winning seven sets by either a 6-1 or 6-0 scoreline, the most on the team.
- Kack has won four straight completed matches in both doubles and singles.
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 68 dual wins across singles and doubles in her first three campaigns with the Phoenix. She won at least 12 matches in both singles and doubles in each of her first two seasons.
- 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.
- Bergeron went 5-0 alongside Reding at No. 1 doubles and 4-1 at No. 1 singles during Elon's five-match homestand.
- The junior's four singles victories during the homestand all came in straight sets, losing more than two games in just one of those eight winning frames.
- Bergeron continued her clutch run in tiebreaks during Elon's homestand, winning a first-set breaker in her victory against Wofford on Feb. 28. The junior has now won 7-of-9 career dual singles tiebreaks, a winning percentage just under 80%.
- Alongside Reding, Bergeron has helped the Phoenix win its last five doubles points.
Winning Contributions
- Elon has received contributions throughout its lineup during its homestand, with seven Phoenix tallying multiple victories.
- Nyborg joined Elon's doubles lineup during the homestand, pairing with Cordisco for a pair of victories to go along with two singles wins.
- Nyborg is 5-3 in singles this spring, with four of the five victories coming in straight sets. She also took a set off North Carolina's Claire Hill on Feb. 17.
- Cordisco is coming off a double-bagel victory against South Carolina State on March 8, as the senior did not drop a game in a 6-0, 6-0 triumph over Iriela Rajaobelina. It was her fourth career dual win by a 6-0, 6-0 score.
- Cordisco is 4-1 playing No. 2 doubles this spring and has added three singles victories.
- Kranec has also been a steady presence in Elon's singles and doubles lineups.
- The sophomore has joined Kack for seven doubles victories this spring, tied for the most on the Phoenix. The duo has anchored the No. 3 spot, with all six victories coming at that position.
- Kranec is 4-3 in singles this spring, with all four wins coming in straight sets and both losses coming against ranked teams. She took her first set in a tiebreak against Thea Rabman of No. 3 North Carolina on Feb. 17.
Nat Debuts
- Marinovitch made her dual debut for the Phoenix on Feb. 25 against North Carolina A&T, playing the No. 6 singles spot.
- The freshman came through a tight match against the Aggies, defeating Flavia Villegas for her first career dual victory.
- Marinovitch was back in the lineup on Feb. 28 against Wofford, again at the No. 6 position. She clinched the match for the Phoenix with a 6-4, 7-5 win over Marie Henriksen.
- Against South Carolina State over the weekend, Marinovitch made her dual doubles debut, partnering Kack at the No. 3 spot. The duo led 4-3 when the match was halted.
- Marinovitch has played either singles or doubles in four of the last five matches.
Career Milestones
- Several Phoenix are moving up Elon's all-time ranks in career doubles wins.
- With her seven doubles victories this spring, Bergeron is up to 40 career wins. The junior became the 14th Phoenix to reach 40 career dual doubles victories with her triumph against South Alabama.
- Reding is not far behind her doubles partner, as she recently cracked the top 15 in career doubles wins with the Phoenix with 38 victories.
- Cordisco is also making a move up the rankings, as the senior is up to 35 career doubles victories.
Doubles Success
- Elon has won the doubles point in five straight matches and in all seven of its victories this season.
- The Phoenix has lost just two matches in its eight winning doubles points. Elon has a 18-2 record in its eight winning doubles points this season.
- Of the seven Elon doubles pairs to play together this spring, four have delivered victories.
- Bergeron and Reding have won five straight matches together and are tied for the team lead with seven victories this spring. During their winning streak, they have dropped just seven 11 of 41 games (30-11).
- Kack and Kranec are tied for the team lead with seven wins at the No. 3 spot. The duo has won four straight outings and seven of their last eight.
- Elon is 13-1 in completed doubles matches contested at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center this season, dropping its first on Wednesday against South Alabama.
- Including matches from the fall season, Elon is 49-17 in completed doubles matches in the 2025-26 campaign.
- Elon utilized its sixth different doubles lineup Wednesday against South Alabama, with Marinovitch and Nyborg forming a new pairing at the No. 2 spot.
The Anderson Era
- Head coach Elizabeth Anderson is in 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 315 victories at Elon. Her winning percentage is 62% in 506 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 Furman
- Furman is 8-3 this season and rides a five-match winning streak into Saturday's contest.
- The Paladins are coming off their biggest win of the season, a 4-2 home victory over Virginia Tech on March 8. Furman won the doubles point and then won at Nos. 2, 3 and 6 singles to earn the win against an ACC opponent.
- Furman has also defeated Belmont, Toledo, Florida Gulf Coast and Memphis during its winning streak.
- The Paladins have been ranked as high as No. 67 in the ITA rankings this spring.
- Two Furman doubles duos are in the ITA rankings. Lillie Murphy and Ellie Warren are ranked No. 34, with Murphy also ranked No. 63 with Sasha Dimitrov.
- Murphy leads the Paladins with eight singles wins this spring, all coming at the No. 2 spot. Bianca Ceroni (7-2) and Dimitrov (6-3) also have winning singles records.
- Warren is Furman's top singles player with a 4-6 record playing the No. 1 position.
- Furman is 17-6 in doubles this season and has won the doubles point in four straight contests without dropping a match.
- Ceroni and Warren are 5-2 playing the No. 2 position this spring, with Macy Hitchcock and Molly Robinson also holding a 5-2 mark at the No. 3 spot.
- Murphy and Warren are a perfect 3-0 playing the top doubles spot.
- Furman is led by fourth-year head coach Michelle Dasso.
Stay Posted
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