Elon Phoenix men's soccer
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| Full name | Elon University Men's Soccer |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) |
Fightin' Christians (1972–1999), Phoenix (1999–present) |
| Founded | 1972 |
| Ground | Rudd Field |
| Head Coach | Marc Reeves |
| Asst. Coach | Brad Franks, Maciej Sliwinski, Taylor Saxe |
| League | Division I (NCAA), Colonial Athletic Association |
| Website | Club home page |
Fightin' Christians (1972–1999),
The Elon University Phoenix Men’s Soccer team, much like its mascot, is a program on the rise. Founded in 1972 as a member of the NAIA, the team moved to NCAA Division II in 1989 and finally to NCAA Division I in 1999. The program is currently under the direction of head coach Marc Reeves.
Darren Powell led the Phoenix to a .500 or better record in each of his 5 seasons at the helm. Powell also led Elon Soccer to its first conference championship in 2008, as the team captured the Southern Conference regular season crown. This was followed up in 2009 with the team's first appearance in the SoCon Championship game. Though Elon fell short in that game, the program has made strides from its humble 3–14 introduction to Division I in 1999. The team joined the Colonial Athletic Association July 1, 2014.
Elon men's soccer played its inaugural season in the Fall of 1972 with Charles Harris serving as the Fightin' Christians first head coach. Elon competed in the NAIA as a member of the Carolinas Conference (CIAC). Faced with the challenge of building a program virtually from scratch, Coach Harris and the Fightin' Christians had mixed results. After debuting with a 2–1 victory over Greensboro College on October 13, 1972, the team would lose its last four games to finish the inaugural season with a 1–4 record. Elon and Coach Harris struggled to find the winning formula during the formative years of the program. When Harris relinquished the reins following the 1977 season, Elon was still seeking its first winning-season in men's soccer. Though the record books may not remember the Charles Harris era very favorably (16-40-4 cumulative record in 6 seasons), he laid the foundation of a program for his successors to build upon.
A 6–6 (2–4 CIAC) record in 1976 stood as the best season in the brief history of Elon soccer as Steve Ballard took over as head coach in the Fall of 1978. Coach Ballard and the Fightin' Christians would need just two seasons to better that mark and subsequently take the program to the next level. The team struggled during Ballard's rookie year as head coach, finishing the year with a 2-11-1 (0–6 CIAC) record. The Fightin' Christians rebounded in 1979 to finish the decade with the first winning season in program history with an 8-6-2 (2-3-1 CIAC) record. Elon also qualified for the NAIA District 26 Playoffs that season, and though they were defeated by High Point 5-0, the 1979 team proved to those outside the program that Elon soccer had arrived.
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