Greetings from
Best Men's Varsity Sport
Baseball
Mason Willett | News Director
As a new season approaches Elon baseball has one more accomplishment to add to many successes last season being named male sport of the year. Senior third baseman Connor Offshack said that it was an honor being named best men’s varsity team this year in such a strong athletic program.
“The baseball team had a successful year last spring but we still came up short of our goal to win a CAA championship and bring that title back to elon,” Offshack said. “There’s nothing we want more than to win the CAA championship and having the university behind us gives us an extra push to complete our goal,”
Offshack said that the 2023 season had a lot of exciting moments that he loved being a part of but some moments were bigger than the rest.
“I would have to say that beating any team that is ranked is always a good feeling and gives us some more confidence during CAA play. ,” Offshack said.
Looking towards the future, Offshack said that the team is looking to win the Coastal Athletic Association championship and get a shot at the college world series.
“Everyone on our team knows that we are capable of winning and we just need to do it,” Offshack said. “We are also looking forward to the memories that will be made and all of the hard work to payoff during the season,”
As for Offshack’s goals he aligns himself with the team but understands that bringing home a trophy isn’t easy so he knows he and the team will need to work hard this season.
“Winning in the league is a hard thing to do so celebrating a weekend series win is always a good feeling. I’m looking forward to playing with this team and seeing what we can do this year as a whole,” Offshack said.
Greetings from
Best Women's Varsity Sport
Volleyball
Naomi Washington | Elon News Network
The women’s volleyball team was voted best women’s varsity team by the campus community.
This season was filled with big moments for Elon’s volleyball team — from home games in Schar Center to its senior night tribute. The team went 5-22 in the 2023 season with a 2-16 record against its conference opponents.
Senior team captain Jordan Gower was excited to be voted best women’s varsity team. Gower said the people are what make the experience for her.
“This past season we did have a lot of ups and downs, but I think that the people that I’m surrounded with and our team culture is what makes us so special,” Gower said.
Gower said the relationships she formed with her teammates and coaches are what set this season apart from the previous ones she’s spent at Elon.
“Our team bonding is something that we really focused on this past season and that really just showed in our team chemistry on the court and just helped us play well together,” Gower said.
That chemistry can be seen on the court and the team’s Instagram page, @elonvb.
“My teammates and coaches really just push me to be the best version of myself both on and off the court,” Gower said.
Greetings from
Best Club Sport
Women's Ultimate
Abigail Hobbs | Elon News Network
The women’s ultimate frisbee team compete at the regional tournament on April 13 and 14, 2023. Photo courtesy of Nicole McGinty.
The women’s ultimate frisbee team compete at the regional tournament on April 13 and 14, 2023. Photo courtesy of Nicole McGinty.
Women’s ultimate frisbee was voted best club sport by the campus community.
Club president senior Nicole McGinty said the team were some of the first people she met at Elon and loves it because it’s an accepting and learning environment.
“The thing with frisbee: coming in, a lot of people don’t play frisbee, so it’s a learning experience for everybody,” McGinty said. “It’s just a welcoming environment.”
Senior Macy Anderson, captain of the team, also said the team is really close and enjoys doing bonding activities and going to dinner together. Recently, the team had a party where everybody made a blanket to sit on during tournaments.
“I love how close we are. We’re all really good friends,” Anderson said. “We do a lot of bonding activities, and we go to dinner all the time together. So it’s just really fun like having a big group of like friends to hang out with all the time like on the team.”
Each semester, the team plays two to three weekend tournaments, according to McGinty. The club will be hosting a tournament this spring.
Both McGinty and Anderson had no previous experience playing frisbee but really enjoyed the sport as well as the team. McGinty said the team is always looking for new members.
Follow the team on Instagram @elonwomensultimate or on Phoenix Connect.
Greetings from
Best Phoenix Moment
Baseball Beating Wake Forest
Miles Hayford | Elon News Network
Members of the Elon University baseball team spill out of the dugout at Latham Park as fans celebrate the final out of a 5-3 upset victory against No. 2 Wake Forest University on April 4, 2023. ENN file photo.
Members of the Elon University baseball team spill out of the dugout at Latham Park as fans celebrate the final out of a 5-3 upset victory against No. 2 Wake Forest University on April 4, 2023. ENN file photo.
On April 4, the Elon University baseball team delivered a historic win at Latham Park.
Elon defeated Wake Forest 5-3 after facing 3-0 deficit following the first inning. It was the first win at home against the Demon Deacons since 2012, and it was the highest ranked win at home in the program’s history.
Head coach Mike Kennedy said the historic win was a massive boost of confidence for the team.
“It was a huge spark to the mental psyche of our club,” Kennedy said.
The upset win was a great revenge game for the team’s 20-0 loss to Wake Forest earlier in the season.
“There was a good sense of accomplishment at the end of that day and the guys were really feeling like we just beat a super good team that took it to us earlier,” Kennedy said.
The win was an exciting moment for the Elon community, and it was voted the best elon sports moment by the community.
In addition to the excitement felt by the fans, the win was a thrilling experience for the team.
“Our guys felt really good about it. The energy picked up from that game on, I can remember like it was yesterday,” Kennedy said. “The next day of practice there was a bounce in our guys and pep in their step.”
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