What coach Mike Kennedy has accomplished at Elon is nothing short of amazing.

Kennedy has turned Elon into a national name and also has made the Phoenix a postseason mainstay the past few seasons.

Last season, Elon captured another Southern Conference title and reached another NCAA regional. Still, though, the Phoenix would love nothing more than to take a huge step forward in the near future with a super regional appearance.

Accomplishing that goal in 2010 could be difficult.

The Phoenix must find a way to replace five of their top six hitters. They also must get much better on the mound to be a contender deep in the NCAA postseason.

Can the Phoenix take the biggest step forward in the year they're least expected to?

It's time to dissect Elon.

Elon's five keys

1. Replace some gaping holes at the plate -- For the first time in a while, the Phoenix enter the spring with a plethora of question marks at the plate. That's because the Phoenix is without five of their top six hitters, including Pat Irvine, Chase Austin, Bennett Davis, Cory Harrilchak and Dallas Tarleton. Irvine batted .402 with 17 homers and 57 RBIs last season, Austin batted .359 with 23 homers and 82 RBIs, Davis batted .343 with 18 homers and 64 RBIs, Harrilchak batted .336 with 16 homers and 61 RBIs and Tarleton batted .293 with 13 homers and 47 RBIs. Overall, the Phoenix must find a way to replace 87 of 138 homers last season. That's a loss of 63 percent of their home run production. It'll be interesting to see how the Phoenix bounce back in the spring.

2. Surprise some people at the plate -- I don't think anyone believes the Phoenix will be bad at the plate in the spring, but most believe there's a good chance they at least drop 15-20 points in batting average. We'll see if that actually happens. The Phoenix definitely need strong campaigns from Mike Melillo and Justin Hilt. Melillo batted .344 with 19 doubles, three triples, 18 homers and 59 RBIs last season. Hilt, meanwhile, batted .289 with 16 homers and 55 RBIs. Other returning hitters that could have huge roles include Neal Pritchard, Harry Austin, Ryan Adams and Zeth Stone. Pritchard slugged 10 homers and knocked in 42 runs last season. Austin, Adams, and Stone hit over .300 in limited action. Elon can take the next step if the offense rises to the occasion.

3. Weekend rotation needs to make more of an impact -- The Phoenix has no excuse to not have a solid weekend rotation in the spring. This unit has much experience with the return of ace Jimmy Reyes, Ken Ferrer and Daniel Britt. Reyes went 8-0 with a 4.78 ERA in 84 2/3 innings last season. Ferrer, meanwhile, went 8-1 with a 5.30 ERA in 73 innings. He also struck out 52 and walked 37 and teams hit .317 against him. There's also Britt, who went 8-1 last season with a 5.86 ERA in 63 innings. He also struck out 39 and walked 22 and teams hit him at a .305 clip. The weekend rotation has a solid anchor in Reyes, but Ferrer and Britt have much work to do. The dynamic of this club changes if the weekend rotation is able to set the tone.

4. Bullpen needs more depth and quality pitching -- A lack of quality arms in the bullpen is a chief reason the Phoenix finished last season with a dismal 6.17 ERA. That number must greatly improve if Elon expects to take any steps forward in the spring. Elon welcomes back key relievers Thomas Girdwood and Jordan Darnell. Girdwood earned 17 saves last season and had a 5.33 ERA in 25 1/3 innings. Darnell, meanwhile, made 25 appearances and tallied a 5.60 ERA in 27 1/3 innings. Teams hit Girdwood at a .296 clip and Darnell at a .232 clip. Girdwood and Darnell certainly could improve in '10, but the Phoenix desperately need Ryan Adams and Jared Kernodle to take some pressure off the other arms. Adams appeared in 19 games last season and had a 6.35 ERA in 28 1/3 innings. Kernodle appeared in 22 games and had a 6.59 ERA in 28 2/3 innings. In addition to improving as a whole, this unit also must develop more depth.

5. Find a new crop of leaders -- The Phoenix welcome back several pitchers in the spring, but the offense was the heart and soul of the team last season. Elon obviously has some huge holes to fill from a production standpoint. It also has some tough holes to fill from a leadership standpoint. Making sure some leaders rise to the occasion between now and the spring should be an important goal for this club. It'll be interesting to see the team chemistry without a plethora of key cogs back at the plate.