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Martin Kozak goal celebration vs. VMI
Taylor Peery
0
VMI VMI (0-1-0, 0-0-0)
3
Winner Elon ELON (1-0-0, 0-0-0)
VMI VMI
(0-1-0, 0-0-0)
0
Final
3
Elon ELON
(1-0-0, 0-0-0)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
VMI VMI 0 0 0
Elon ELON 1 2 3

Game Recap: Men's Soccer | | Elon Athletics

Elon Blanks VMI In Season Opener

Phoenix Opens Campaign With 3-0 Victory

ELON – The Elon men's soccer team (1-0) began its 2026 season Thursday with a victory over VMI (0-1) at Rudd Field, authoring a clean sheet in a 3-0 result.

Three different Phoenix scored a goal in the win, with Martin Kozak, Dominik Renz and Jahmir Flowers all finding the back of the net. Flowers and Kozak also added an assist for matching three-point efforts.  

Elon's defense picked up right where it left off a season ago, limiting the Keydets to just seven shot attempts in the shutout. Drew Hartman made his first start in goal with the Phoenix and stopped VMI's two shots on target.

The Phoenix extended its unbeaten streak at Rudd to 11 matches and has now delivered three straight clean sheets dating back to last season.

 How It Happened
  • The Phoenix applied pressure in the opening moments, with Flowers putting Elon's first shot attempt of the season wide in the third minute.
  • In the 19th minute, Flowers created another chance for Elon. After making a run into the left side of the box, the senior slipped past a defender and attempted a shot that VMI's goalkeeper initially stopped. However, Kozak cleaned up the rebound near the right post for Elon's first goal of the campaign. 
  • Elon continued to generate quality scoring chances after Kozak's goal. In the 21st minute, Weston Jonke scared the crossbar with a shot from the top of the box, missing the bar by inches. Kozak forced another VMI save a few minutes later, with Diego Thompson also putting a shot on target in the 33rd minute.
  • Hartman saw his first action in the 34th minute, stopping a shot from VMI's Jaden Moore. Elon attempted six more shots in the opening half, but none were put on goal as the Phoenix took a 1-0 lead into halftime.
  • Elon produced three more shots in the opening 15 minutes of the second half before finally finding its second goal. Oscar Tonidandel started the scoring sequence, laying a pass behind a defender toward the end line for a sprinting Kozak. On his first touch, Kozak rolled the ball to the center of the crease, finding Renz for a tap-in tally to double the Phoenix lead.
 
  • VMI went down a man in the 82nd minute after a red card was assessed to Miguel Osorto.
  • Less than a minute after the VMI ejection, Elon capitalized. Freshman Henry Mertsch took a shot that the VMI keeper saved, but just like on the first Elon goal, the Phoenix punished the Keydets on the rebound, with Flowers scoring to make it 3-0 for Elon.
  • The Phoenix closed out the game from there to secure the three-goal victory.

Notable Numbers
  • Kozak's goal was his sixth with the Phoenix, while his assist on the Renz goal was his ninth helper. It was his second match with both a goal and an assist with Elon, with the other coming in last year's CAA Tournament semifinal against Campbell.
  • The three points were a career best for Flowers as it was his first career match notching both a goal and an assist. The senior has now scored a goal in all four of his years with the Phoenix.
  • Kozak and Flowers led the Phoenix in shots, with both attempting a game-high five.  
  • Renz, last year's CAA Rookie of the Year, cashed in his fifth career goal. It was his first goal that did not serve as the game-winning marker for the Phoenix, as all four of his tallies a season ago were game winners. 
  • Tonidandel's assist on the Renz goal was the second of his Phoenix career and first since last season against Duke.
  • Mertsch posted his first career point with the assist on Flowers' goal. The freshman midfielder played nine reserve minutes in the second half for Elon.
  • In total, Elon outshot VMI 26-9 on the night. The Phoenix also generated six corner kick opportunities compared to VMI's two.
  • Thompson attempted four shots in 35 reserve minutes during his first Elon appearance, with Jonke taking three shots of his own. Caleb Frakes and Jordin Wilson both attempted a pair of shots.
  • Jonke, Magnus Jacobsen and Daire McCarthy all went the full 90 minutes in the field for the Phoenix.
  • Four Phoenix started in their Elon debuts – Frakes, McCarthy, Tønnes Daland and Graham Jones. Daland played 81 minutes, with Frakes (70) and Jones (50) each playing over a half.
  • Robbie Reeves and Kosei Sasaki joined Mertsch and Thompson in making their first Elon appearances in reserve roles. JP Quigley also logged his first regular season minutes since 2024.
  • Hartman was the first goalie other than Jackson Leavitt to play regular season minutes in goal for the Phoenix since 2024. 
  • Elon has now orchestrated a clean sheet in three straight season openers. The Phoenix is 2-0-1 in those matches.
  • The three goals were the most by the Phoenix in a season opener since the spring 2021 campaign, when Elon defeated Shaw, 3-1.

Up Next
Elon hits the road for the first time this season with a match at Old Dominion on Aug. 24. Kickoff in Norfolk, Virginia, is slated for 6 p.m.

Stay Posted        
For further coverage of Elon men's soccer, follow the Phoenix on X (@ElonMSoccer), Instagram (elonmsoccer) and Facebook (Elon Men's Soccer).  

 
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