FORT MYERS, Fla. – Another tough battle on the courts went against the FGCU men's tennis team as the Eagles fell 5-2 to George Washington on Thursday night. The Eagles fall to 4-7 on the year while the Colonials are now 12-5.

"Today was actually a step in the right direction," said head coach CJ Weber. "George Washington is really strong at the top and they won at some really key moments in the match. We just have to continue to focus on getting tougher. UCF is another great test for us Sunday."

FGCU pushed the doubles portion to a third match as Andres Alfonzo (Hollywood, Fla./Florida Virtual School/Texas Christian University) and Austin Bates (Marietta, Ga./Pope HS) secured a win at No. 3 over Chris Reynolds and Fernando Silva 6-4. However losses at No. 1 and No. 2, gave the George Washington the doubles point.

Oliver Landert (Naples, Fla./Florida Virtual School/Florida) and Felipe Ramirez (Armenia, Colombia/Florida Virtual School) suffered losses at No. 2 and No. 1 respectively before Ezequiel Cerrini (Sunny Isles Beach, Fla./Homeschool) put FGCU on the board with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 win at No. 4.

Matches on Courts Three and Five finished almost simultaneously as Mateo Ruiz (Bucaramanga, Colombia/Oklahoma State) won while Alfonzo dropped his match to give George Washington the win.

Javier Fernandez (Ibiza, Spain/IES CTEIB) was the last on the courts, falling in three sets at No. 6.

UP NEXT
The Eagles welcome in-state foe UCF to Fort Myers Sunday for the final match before ASUN Conference play.

FULL RESULTS
DOUBLES
1) Tverijonas/Fletcher (GW) def. Landert/Ramirez (FGCU) 6-4
2) Tutecky/Hadjigeorgiou (GW) def. Fernandez/Cerrini (FGCU) 6-4
3) Alfonzo/Bates (FGCU) def. Reynolds/Sala (GW) 6-4
SINGLES
1) Tverijonas (GW) def. Ramirez (FGCU) 6-3, 6-2
2) Fletcher (GW) def. Landert (FGCU) 6-1, 6-1
3) Reynolds (GW) def. Alfonzo (FGCU) 3-6, 6-3, 7-5
4) Cerrini (FGCU) def. Hadjigeorgiou (GW) 3-6, 6-2, 6-3
5) Ruiz (FGCU) def. Tutecky (GW) 4-6, 6-3, 7-5
6) Afanasev (GW) def. Fernandez (FGCU) 1-6, 7-6, 6-4
Order of Finish: Doubles (2, 3, 1) Singles (2, 1, 4, 3, 5, 6)

CJ WEBER
FGCU is led by CJ Weber who has coached 23 ASUN All-Conference selections since joining the Green and Blue in 2011. In his fifth year, Weber has compiled a 68-50 (.600) overall record and a 26-11 (.694) record in ASUN 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. The Eagles completed consecutive perfect ASUN seasons in 2016 and back-to-back conference titles as well as a second-straight Coach of the Year honor for Weber.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
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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.