STATESBORO, Ga. – Having won seven of its previous eight matches, the FGCU men's tennis team embarks on a season-long road stand, starting with a pair of matches in Statesboro, Ga. While there, the Eagles (8-3) have a neutral site contest against Troy (3-9) Saturday before facing Georgia Southern (8-3) Sunday.

LAST TIME OUT
FGCU celebrated a special moment, the dedication of Court One at the FGCU Tennis Complex, with a 5-2 win over Florida A&M Saturday.  Following doubles wins at No. 1 and No. 2, FGCU took a moment to honor the late Tom Manring, who through the Tom Manring Foundation has supported the men's tennis program annually.

As the match transitioned to singles, the Green and Blue continued their impressive performances on the courts. Oliver Landert (Naples, Fla./Florida Virtual School/Florida) kept the momentum moving forward with a 6-1, 6-0 win at No. 5 singles. Andres Alfonzo (Hollywood, Fla./Texas Christian University) then earned a 6-1, 6-4 win at No. 1 singles before Ezequiel Cerrini (Sunny Isles Beach, Fla./Homeschool) clinched the match win at No. 3 singles. Chris Perrigan (Tallahassee, Fla./Maclay HS) moved into the No. 6 spot in the lineup, giving FGCU its final win of the evening.

SCOUTING THE TROJANS
Troy is a tested group, having faced nine ranked opponents this season. Of those nine duals, the Trojans dropped eight of them, but did defeat Texas-San Antonio 4-0. When the Trojans and Eagles meet, Troy will be in the midst of four matches in three days.

Winners of their last two matches, the Trojans have played Daniel Bustamante consistently from the No. 1 and No. 2 positons. Bustamante is 3-6 this dual season and 2-5 from the top spot in the lineup. Troy has used a variety of options at the No. 2 and No. 3 positions. Andy Lau and Vaclav Slezak are the two most frequently used players at No. 2, both carrying 0-3 marks. Meanwhile at No. 3, Lau and Giovani Samaha are a combined 2-5. Pablo Moreno enters the weekend having won his previous six matches, with positive records at both No. 4 (3-1) and No. 5 (4-2) singles.

Andre Baldo and Filip Mansson have made five appearances at No. 1 doubles, but have yet to record a win. Lau and Samaha have earned two of the three wins at No. 2 doubles for the Trojans this season.

FGCU and Troy have split the previous four meetings. Troy has won both of its matches by 4-3 finals, meanwhile FGCU has claimed its wins, 5-2. Last season, the Eagles won the doubles point but fell 4-3 overall.

SCOUTING THE EAGLES
Georgia Southern brings a spotless 3-0 home record into the weekend helping its 8-3 overall record. Ristomatti Lanne remains perfect on the year from No. 1 singles, posting a 9-0 record. JC Alcala has made the majority of his appearances from the No. 2 position in the lineup, but did earn a win in his lone appearance at No. 1. From his solidified No. 2 position, Alcala is 6-2. At No. 3, Eduardo Landin is 8-2.

In addition to his top singles spot, Lanne has seven appearances at No. 1 doubles alongside both Daniel Casablancas and Christian Kerrigan. When pairing with Casablancas, the duo is 1-0 with two unfinished matches. With Kerrigan, the Eagle duo has a 2-3 record from the top spot. Landin and Nico De Groof have played both No. 1 and No. 2 doubles in 2016 for Georgia Southern. The team is 5-5, including a 4-2 record at No. 2 doubles.

FGCU and Georgia Southern have split the four matches leading up to Sunday's contest. After falling 6-1 in 2010 and 4-2 in 2011, the Green and Blue have emerged victorious in 2012 and 2015. Last season, FGCU nearly swept the match, dropping just the No. 6 singles point.

UP NEXT
The Eagles are slated to face a pair of Top 75 opponents at the USF Invite on March 12 and 13. The weekend begins with a match against current No. 24 Penn State Saturday before FGCU turns its attention to No. 51 UNC-Wilmington Sunday.

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 55-40 (.579) 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.