Veterans take charge as CAA tournament approaches sports briefs
SWtSH
This season,
the team
holds a 14-11
record. The
team has
only been
defeated by
an average of
7.25 points
The Phoenix only has three
home games remaining in the
Alumni Gym
Erik Webb
Sports Director i @ErikWebbElon
The Elon University men’s
basketball team looked strong
as they pulled off a wire-to-wire
victory against
the University
of Delaware on
Saturday, Feb. 3.
The game,
the first of a
three-game
homestand, was
watched by a
fan-filled Alum
ni Gym eager to
see if the team
would make it to the upcoming
Colonial Athletic Association
(CAA) tournament.
“This league is as crazy a
league as Tve ever been in,” head
coach Matt Matheny said. “Its
wild - every game, every night.”
“In this league, anything can
happen on any night and it s im
portant that you’re ready to play
every night,” junior forward Ty
ler Seibring said. “We’re trying
to accomplish a big thing here
and we need to work to do that,
to play consistently and play our
game.”
After the win against Dela
ware, the Phoenix sits in sixth
place in the league. If the stand
ings stay as they are, Elon will
not play until the final quarter
final game of the CAA tourna
ment, facing off against North
eastern University on Sunday,
March 3 at 8:30 p.m. The Phoe
nix fell to the Huskies on Jan.
5, the only time the teams have
ALEXMANDELL I STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
The outline goes here and here and herey and must extend at least 2/3 across the bottom of the photo to look normal.
faced off this season.
Elon relies on its veteran lead
ers - the same starting five with
which it began games last year.
With the returners, it is easy to
put trust in what they are able to
do both on and off the court and
are receiving high praise from
the man in charge.
“Our captains are Brian Daw
kins, Dmitri Thompson, Tyler
Seibring and Dainan Swoope,”
Matheny said. “I think they form
a very strong core group of lead
ership.”
“We both take our posi
tions seriously as captains on
this team,” Seibring said. “That
doesn’t always mean scoring a
lot of points. We do our best to
lead this team and do whatev
er is necessary. I know I trust
[Swoope], and I think he trusts
me, to come out every game
ready to play.”
At this point in the season,
the team holds a 14-11 (6-6)
record, losing four of its last six
games. In those four losses, Elon
has only been defeated by an av
erage of 7.25 points.
“The way this league is set
up, there’s really no time to
think about it,” said Seibring on
whether or not he was disap
pointed in Elon’s record. “At this
point, whatever happens - this is
a great win, we’re going to cele
brate it - but we’ve got a big task
next week. There’s really no time
for that - we’re just ready to play
the next one.”
Seibring, the Normal, Illinois
native, ranks sixth in the league
with an average of 18.8 points
per CAA matchup. The junior
forward leads the league in make
percentage from behind the arc,
shooting 52.1 percent from deep
in conference games. When
asked what he feels during CAA
games, Seibring was quick to
credit his teammates.
“I think our offense in gen
eral is flowing really well right
now,” he said. “It’s creating a lot
of good looks for a lot of peo
ple. We had a lot of different
guys able to knock down shots.
If anything, it shows how many
weapons we have and opens up
a lot of shots for me and all the
other guys on any given night.”
For the Phoenix, the next test
will be Hofstra University on
Thursday, Feb. 8. The Pride cur
rently sits at fourth in the CAA
standings, boasting a 7-5 con
ference record. A win for Elon
would even the two team’s re
cords at 7-6 and jam up the mid
dle of the standings as March ap
proaches. That game will be one
of only three remaining home
games for the Phoenix in what is
MEN'S BASKETBALL WBMEN’S BASKETBALL
TRACK AND FIELD
SCHEDULE
FEB. 8 JDLTEAM CHALLENGE/
r WINSTON-SALEM
FEB. 9-10 LIBERTY invitational;
LYNCHBURG, VA
SOFTBALL
SCHEDULE
0-0
FEB. 10
UNC CHARLOTTE (DH)/
1 & 3 P.M.
ELON
FEB.11
NCCENTRALYELON
1&3P.M.
RESULTS
14-11
RESULTS
15-7
FEB.1 WILLIAM & MARY/
92-99
FEB. 2 COLLEGE OE CHARLESTON/
77-55
WILLIAMSBURG, VA
CHARLESTON, SC
FEB. 3 DELWARE/ELON
89-76
FEB. 4 JAMES MADISON/ELON
50-43
SCHEDULE
SCHEDULE
FEB.8 HOESTRA/ELON
7 P.M.
FEB. 9 DREXELYELON
7 P.M.
FEB. 10 JAMES MADISON/ELON
7 P.M.
FEB. 11 COLLEGE OE CHARLESTON/
ELON
2 P.M.
MEN’S TENNIS
WOMEN'S TENNIS
RESULTS
3-3
SCHEDULE
3-2
FEB. 3 TROY/JACKSONVILLE, EL
4-3
FEB. 9 LIBERTY/LYNCHBURG, VA
2 P.M.
FEB. 4 NORTH FLORIDA/
JACKSONVILLE, EL
CANCELLED
FEB. 10 TROY/LYNCHBURG, VA
J0A.M.
SCHEDULE
FEB. 9 NO STATE/RALEIGH
5 P.M.
LACROSSE
MEN'S GOLF
SCHEDULE
0-0
FEB. 11 DUKE/DURHAM
JP.M.
SCHEDULE
FEB. 11-13 MARTIN DOWNS COLLEGIATE/
PALM CITY, EL
Women’s basketball
defeats top team
The Elon University women’s bas
ketball team ended James Madison
University’s 11 -game winning streak on
Sunday afternoon, defeating the Dukes
50-43 in Alumni Gym. The Phoenix
has now won five of its last six con
ference games and is tied for third in
the Colonial Athletic Association with
Northeastern University.
Senior center Malaya Johnson was
picked as the CAA Player of the Week
for the second time this season after
scoring in double figures in six of the
last seven games, including both games
this past weekend.
The Phoenix will host a pair of
home games on Friday, Feb. 9 at 7 p.m.
and Saturday, Feb. 11 at 2 p.m. against
Drexel University and the College of
Charleston, respectively.
Football holds signing
day reception
After reaching the Football
Championship Subdivision (FCS) play
offs and falling in the first round, the
Elon University football team will host a
signing reception on Wednesday, Feb. 7
at 5:30 p.m. in the Walker Room inside
the Alumni Field House.
The reception will honor the 10 new
members of the team, as well as the
players that sign during the second and
final signing day on Wednesday.
Look for coverage of the event on
ElonNewsNetwork.com and Twitter @
SportsENN on Wednesday.
Hames throws her
way to school record
After throwing her way into the
NCAA Outdoor Championships in
discuss last season, senior thrower Bry-
anna Hames set a program best in the
shot put at the Camel City Invitational
in Winston-Salem this weekend.
Hames recorded a toss of 49’ 7.75”
(15.13m), placed third overall in the
event and qualified for the Eastern
College Athletic Associated (ECAC)
Indoor Championships in March. The
throw bettered the previous record of
48’ 6” (14.78m).
The Elon University women’s track
and field team will be back in action on
Thursday, Feb. 8 at the JDL Team Chal
lenge in Winston-Salem before travel
ing to Lynchburg, Virginia on the Feb.
8-9 for the Liberty Invitational.
Phoenix teams open
spring seasons
Three Phoenix teams will open their
spring seasons this weekend.
The Elon University women’s lacrosse
team, ranked No. 21 in the Intercollegiate
Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association
(IWLCA) national poll, will make the
trip to Durham to face No. 20 Duke
University. That game is scheduled for
Sunday, Feb. 11 at 1 p.m.
The Elon University softball team will
start its 2018 campaign with a pair of
doubleheaders this weekend. The first
will be on Saturday, Feb. 10 against the
University of North Carolina at Charlotte,
followed by a pair of games against North
Carolina Central University on Sunday,
Feb. 11. Finally, the Elon University men’s
golf team will return to action, starting
their spring season at the University of
North Carolina at Greensboro’s tourna
ment at the Martin Downs Golf Club in
Palm City, Florida Feb. 11-13.