ELON – The Elon men's soccer team (5-2-2) closes out the month Tuesday night with a nonconference home match against USC Upstate (3-7-0) at Rudd Field. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.

Elon vs. USC Upstate Briefing
Match Details: Sept. 29 | Elon, N.C. | Rudd Field | 7 p.m.
Watch: FloCollege
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Admission: Free
Elon Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Stats | Game Program
USC Upstate Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Stats
 
Noche Latina

• Tuesday night will be Elon's Noche Latina match to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month in partnership with El Centro.
• This event will feature fun Spanish music, lineups announced in Spanish and a taco bar.

 
The USC Upstate Series

• Elon and USC Upstate played for the first time last season at Rudd. The Phoenix won the match 1-0 behind a 26th minute goal by Dominik Renz and a clean sheet in goal from Jackson Leavitt.

 
Elon Storylines

• Down Goes Duke: Elon earned its first ever road win against Duke on Friday night, downing the Blue Devils in Durham, 1-0. Joe Taylor scored the lone goal of the match.
• 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. 
• Give Him His Flowers: Jahmir Flowers has already set a career high in goals with four through Elon's first nine matches this season. The senior has scored in four of eight appearances and leads the Phoenix with nine points.
• Goalie Rotation: Elon has rotated goalies in the first nine matches of the season. Drew Hartman has started six times, including all four of Elon's CAA contests. Mikolaj Lenarcik has made three starts and posted his first career shutout in Elon's win against Radford. Lenarcik became the first Phoenix goalkeeper since 2015 to register an assist in the victory over the Highlanders.
• Oscar-Worthy Performance: Oscar Tonidandel has racked up five points in Elon's last five matches. The midfielder had a goal and assist in a CAA win against Campbell before adding assists last week against Radford and College of Charleston. Tonidandel's six points are the third most on the Phoenix this season.
• Dom-inating: Renz is second on the Phoenix in both points (8) and goals (3). The reigning CAA Rookie of the Year has netted a goal in each of Elon's last two conference matches. The forward has points in three of Elon's last five outings.
• Nonconference Success: Elon is 4-1-0 this season against nonconference opponents and has won three straight nonconference fixtures against Radford, Davidson and Duke.
• Iron Man Streak: Jacobsen has played all 810 minutes on Elon's back line this season, the only Phoenix to not be subbed off the field. The defender also has a goal and an assist on the campaign.
• Offensive Production: Elon has scored multiple goals in five of its nine matches this season. Elon's 17 goals have come from 12 different scorers. The Phoenix is tied for second among CAA teams in goals scored this season as of Saturday.
• Captain Martin: Kozak has four points in seven appearances this season. The reigning CAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player has a goal and a pair of assists on the campaign, highlighted by a three-point effort in Elon's season-opening victory against VMI. He was named to the Hermann Trophy Preseason Watch List last month.

 
Playing Devil's Advocate

• The Phoenix earned its first ever road win at Duke on Friday night, defeating the Blue Devils 1-0 at Koskinen Stadium.
• Taylor scored a third minute goal off a free kick, which proved to be the only goal of the contest.
• Elon limited Duke's offense to just seven shot attempts on the night, blanking the Blue Devils for its fourth clean sheet of the campaign.
• Hartman made three saves in goal, including one in the final minute to preserve Elon's shutout victory.
• This was Elon's third ever victory against Duke and the first since the Phoenix downed the Blue Devils at Rudd in 2019.
• The win was Elon's first against an ACC opponent since defeating North Carolina at Rudd Field on Oct. 18, 2022. This was Elon's first time beating an ACC team on the road since a 2015 victory at Wake Forest.

 
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 USC Upstate

• The Spartans are 3-7-0 this season after a loss Saturday night at Longwood in their most recent match.
• USC Upstate won its Big South opener last week against Presbyterian, 3-1.
• The Spartans faced CAA opponent College of Charleston earlier this season, falling 2-1 against the Cougars.
• Christian Cook leads the Spartans wit in points (8) and goals (4) this season. Josh Zawlocki has three goals, with Tolu Fabamifobee tied with Zawlocki for second on the team with six points.
• Jarrett Wuerslin has played every minute in goal this season for Upstate. He has made 36 saves with a 0.632 save percentage, delivering a pair of clean sheets.
• The Spartans are led by second-year head coach Michael Antoniewicz.

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