Sports

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SPORTS 4/21/16 2:00pm

Tennis teams on fire before CAA Tournament

By Alex Simon

As all of the schools in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) arrive on Elon’s campus, the Elon University men’s and women’s tennis teams enter the CAA Championships with some striking similarities. Both teams are on fire. The men’s team has won nine of its last 10 matches, with the lone loss a close defeat to conference foe College of Charleston.

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SPORTS 4/21/16 1:00pm

Coming off sweep, Elon gears up for CAA run

By Tommy Hamzik

It started with a walk. There were two outs, and the game was seemingly lost. But then came a walk. And a dropped third strike.

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SPORTS 4/16/16 9:44pm

Hall pitches out of jam to lead baseball over Towson Saturday

By Alex Simon

All season long, Elon University baseball head coach Mike Kennedy has trusted junior pitcher Chris Hall to finish games. When Hall loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth and Elon leading by two, he did not flinch. “The great thing about Hall is he shows little emotion,” said assistant coach Robbie Huffstetler.

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SPORTS 4/16/16 9:29pm

Football finishes 2nd of 3 spring scrimmages Saturday morning

By Alex Simon

The defense shone bright at the Elon University football team’s second scrimmage of the spring Saturday morning, stepping up with two interceptions and a dozen tackles for losses. “The biggest thing with the defense today was the big plays, the negative plays,” said head coach Rich Skrosky.

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SPORTS 4/16/16 2:41pm

Guba's walk-off caps off 4-run, 2-out rally to beat Towson

By Jordan Spritzer

Senior Brett Guba went from zero to hero. After striking out while representing the tying run in the bottom of the 8th, Guba capped off a 4-run ninth inning with a walk-off, 2-RBI single in the Elon University baseball team’s 9-8 victory over Towson University April 15 in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play. “I just had to buckle down and battle, try to get a ball in play and give us a chance,” Guba said.

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SPORTS 4/13/16 10:31pm

Elon baseball smothered by No. 12 NC State 23-3

By Alex Hager

The Elon University baseball team played host to the nationally-ranked North Carolina State Wolfpack on Tuesday night, and the Phoenix seemed to have their fate sealed early, falling 23 to three. “You gotta have a quick memory when you play baseball.” said Elon freshman shortstop Ryne Ogren, “That was a kick in the teeth.” The Wolfpack delivered an onslaught of scoring in the game’s opening frame, sending 11 batters to the plate in a seven-run first inning. The scoring didn’t stop there.

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SPORTS 4/13/16 5:00pm

College athletes see overlap between faith, sport

By Tommy Hamzik

Malaya Johnson’s mother, grandmother and uncle were all big supporters at her local church. They held executive roles, and brought Malaya along with them from when she was a baby. She sang.

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SPORTS 4/13/16 10:30am

Giving it all, giving it back

By Hannah Silvers

When making her college decision, junior catcher Emily Roper knew she was going to be a student-athlete. “My dad was a big athlete growing up, and with my brothers being college athletes, I understood the process,” she said. “When it came to me it wasn’t a, ‘Are you going to play in college?’ It was a, ‘Where are you going to play in college?’” She found her way to Elon, where she has so played in 143 of the Phoenix’s 145 games since she’s stepped on campus. This season, Roper is batting .333 with five doubles, five home runs and 29 RBI. With numbers like that, it might be tempting to let them define her. But Roper’s career at Elon — and her path to the softball program — is far more three-dimensional than a stat sheet could capture.

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SPORTS 4/10/16 12:53pm

Softball splits Saturday doubleheader against Hofstra

By Maddy MacKenzie

The Elon University softball team split a doubleheader against Hofstra University Saturday, losing 9-2 in the first game 9-2 and winning 7-1 in the second game. The Phoenix had the lead through four innings in the first game, but a two run home-run by Michaela Transue gave Hofstra the lead in the fifth and then Hofstra converted five hits into six runs to take a 9-2 lead after the sixth inning.

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SPORTS 4/5/16 6:45pm

Football starts spring practices

By Alex Simon

Most college students would love more down time. But for rising sophomore quarterback Connor Christiansen, all the down time meant he couldn’t be on the field for the Elon University football team. And now, after four months of workouts, he gets to do just that. “I don’t know how many weeks of winter workouts we had, but it felt like it would never end,” Christiansen said.

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SPORTS 4/5/16 5:30pm

Kicking it in San Antonio

By Jordan Spritzer

There’s an Elon University men’s soccer reunion of sorts beginning in San Antonio. Former Elon men’s soccer head coach Darren Powell was named the first head coach of the expansion franchise San Antonio FC in January, who’ll play in the United Soccer League (USL) – the third tier of the United States’ soccer pyramid.

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SPORTS 4/5/16 4:15pm

Column: Elon's pitching progress behind schedule

By Tommy Hamzik

It took the Elon University baseball team five pitchers to get three outs, one inning that backfired but exposed a larger problem that’s persisted through much of this season. The Phoenix pitching staff still isn’t at the caliber it was expected to reach. About halfway through the season, and three weekends into Colonial Athletic Association play, Elon’s pitchers are still struggling to do the one thing they’re supposed to do — throw strikes. Elon has walked more batters (XXX) than any other team in the CAA, and has the second most wild pitches (XXX) among CAA teams. Best representative of this was the April 2 loss to College of Charleston, the league’s reigning champion that’s spent part of this season nationally ranked.

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SPORTS 4/3/16 12:00pm

Softball sweeps doubleheader against Charleston Saturday

By Maddy MacKenzie

The Elon University softball team continued its undefeated start to Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play with two more wins against the College of Charleston Saturday, winning 5-1 in Game 1 and 4-3 in Game 2 of the doubleheader. In the first game, Elon’s offense had eight hits spread out between six batters, led by freshman second baseman Erica Serafini going 2-2 with three runs, three RBIs, and her first career home-run.

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SPORTS 4/2/16 9:34pm

Charleston rallies, sinks Elon baseball Saturday afternoon

By Alex Simon

No matter how many pitchers head coach Mike Kennedy sent out late in the game, the Elon University baseball team could not stop the damage. Kennedy used five pitchers in the seventh inning and three more in the eighth, but the Phoenix allowed three runs in the seventh and two more in the eighth in a 6-2 loss Saturday afternoon at Latham Park. “We haven’t been good enough to throw guys for a full inning,” Kennedy said.

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SPORTS 4/2/16 3:15pm

Baseball surges past Charleston 9-6 Friday

By Jordan Spritzer

The Phoenix’s four run eighth inning propelled the Elon University baseball team to a 9-6 series-opening victory over the College of Charleston in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play. “When we need to, like in that last inning right there, we came through.

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SPORTS 3/31/16 7:36pm

Women's tennis sweeps Delaware at home Thursday

By Alex Simon

The Elon University women's tennis team swept the University of Delaware 7-0 Thursday afternoon at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center.

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SPORTS 3/30/16 2:00pm

Baseball falls to Wake Forest Tuesday

By Nic Zuhse

The Elon University’s baseball team lost its fifth straight game Tuesday night, falling 4-3 to Wake Forest University at Latham Park. The Demon Deacons scored two runs in the top of the seventh after Elon pitchers walked the bases loaded to start the inning.

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SPORTS 3/30/16 8:47am

Elon's recruiting evolves with technology

By Alex Simon

As he sat back in his chair, an iPhone 6 in front of him, Rich Skrosky couldn’t help but laugh.

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SPORTS 3/17/16 12:45pm

Walking up to the plate with a beat

By Alex Simon

While no one questions that baseball and softball are team sports, the art of hitting is an individual battle, one that each hitter needs to approach in whatever way is best for them.

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SPORTS 3/16/16 1:00pm

Softball outfielders pushing each other to success

By Maddy MacKenzie

The Elon University softball team is littered with quality hitters up and down, with six starters batting .300 or better and three more slugging .500 or higher. But Elon’s typical second and third batters in the lineup — junior outfielder Alaina Hall and sophomore outfielder Kara Shutt — have stood out with their bats and gloves.

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