FORT MYERS, Fla. – Having won six of its last seven matches, the FGCU men's tennis team returns home to face Florida A&M Saturday at 5 p.m.. The Eagles (7-3) also bring an undefeated home record (4-0) into Saturday's match with the Rattlers (3-6), having won nine-straight matches at the FGCU Tennis Complex dating back to last season.

In addition to the match, the Eagles will honor Tom Manring and the Tom Manring Foundation for their continued support of the men's tennis program and will dedicate Court One in his honor.

LAST TIME OUT
FGCU played three matches in two days, starting the weekend with a tough 4-3 loss to UCF Friday. The Green and Blue bounced back, winning both matches Saturday to improve to 7-3 in 2016. The Eagles began the day with a 4-3 win over Texas-Arlington, capped by an Oliver Landert (Naples, Fla./Florida Virtual School/Florida) win at No. 6 singles. Landert was also the last one on the court alongside Eduardo Alfonzo (Hollywood, Fla./Barry University) to claim the doubles point.

After dropping the doubles point to Connecticut, the Eagles swept all six singles points, claiming a 6-1 victory over the Huskies to end the weekend.

For his match-clinching efforts, Landert was named the Atlantic Sun Player of the Week for the first time in his career. Landert joins his doubles partner against UT-Arlington, Eduardo Alfonzo, as the two Eagles who have earned the honor this season.

SCOUTING THE RATTLERS
Florida A&M has won two consecutive dual matches heading into Saturday. The Rattlers defeated both the Citadel and Liberty, improving their 2016 record to 3-6. The Rattlers won both doubles points Saturday, utilizing the same three pairings for both matches. At No. 1 doubles, Walner Espinoza and Carlos Waitman had their match cut short against Liberty as FAMU had secured the point already, but defeated the Citadel 8-0. Courage Okungbowa and Illya Skoromnyy won both matches at No. 2 doubles while Karlyn Small and Jalen Evans secured a pair of wins at No. 3 doubles.

Okungbowa lost both of his matches at No. 1 singles, but was picked up by strong play at No. 2 from Small. The lineup has remained steady, as Waitman and Espinoza have stayed at No. 3 singles and No. 4 singles respectively and both enter the weekend having earned consecutive wins.

FGCU struggled against Florida A&M through the first four meetings, but since 2012-13, the Eagles have won three-straight matches against the Rattlers including consecutive 7-0 wins.

UP NEXT
The Green and Blue embark on a season-long road trip starting with two matches in Statesboro, Ga. While in Georgia, FGCU will face Troy on Saturday, March 5 and Georgia Southern March 6.

FOLLOW ALONG
For complete coverage of FGCU men's tennis follow us on Twitter @FGCU_MTEN and visit www.FGCUAthletics.com where full recaps and results will be available at the end of each day of competition.
 
CJ WEBER
FGCU is led by CJ Weber who has coached 16 A-Sun All-Conference selections since joining the Green and Blue in 2011. In his fifth year, Weber has compiled a 54-40 (.574) overall record and a 20-11 (.645) record in A-Sun play. In 2014-15, Weber guided the Eagles to their first-ever Atlantic Sun Championship and first-ever Atlantic Sun Regular Season title after a program-best 17 wins. In his third season, Weber led Jordi Vives to a No. 35 national ranking, a nation-leading 14-match unbeaten streak and the round of 32 in the 2014 NCAA Tournament - the program's first appearance.
 
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.