DELAND, Fla. – The two-time defending ASUN men's tennis champions begin the quest for a third-straight title this week as the FGCU men's tennis team opens conference play with a pair of matches. FGCU opens its ASUN slate on the road against Stetson Thursday before coming home to play host to last year's tournament champions and regular-season runners-up UNF Saturday.

The match against UNF, scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., is part of the Spirit Cup and Housing Challenges. All are encouraged to attend Saturday's match against FGCU's main rival for the ASUN crown over the past two seasons.

THE GREEN AND BLUE
Plagued by injury, the Eagles enter ASUN play at 4-8 having faced three ranked opponents during the dual season. The final preparation for conference action was a difficult task for the Eagles, who faced #29 South Alabama, #48 UCF, and George Washington. While the Eagles took at least a point in all three matches, FGCU ultimately dropped all three decisions.

Felipe Ramirez (Armenia, Colombia/Florida Virtual School) and Oliver Landert (Naples, Fla./Florida Virtual School/Florida) have split time at No. 1 in recent weeks, combining for a 2-5 record this season. Further down the lineup, Mateo Ruiz (Bucaramanga, Colombia/Oklahoma State) has flourished at No. 5 with a 4-1 record.

Landert and Ramirez have emerged as the top pairing for FGCU, posting a 5-2 mark at No. 1 doubles. Overall, the Eagles have six wins at each of the three positions.

ASUN SUPREMACY
Behind consecutive perfect seasons, the Eagles bring an 18-match regular season conference winning streak into the opening weekend of ASUN play. Over the previous three seasons, FGCU is 18-2 in ASUN matches.

In order to remain atop the conference, FGCU will likely have to post a perfect conference record once again. Since 2006, only one regular season champion has finished with a loss. In 2011, UNF and ETSU shared the regular season title with identical 9-1 records.

SCOUTING THE HATTERS
The only ASUN team to win 10 matches in the run up to conference play, the Hatters have winning records at each of the top five singles positions headlined by Loic Blanco and Angus Bradshaw. The duo has guided Stetson to a combined 28-7 record at the top three positions.

Blanco and Colter Decoste have had the most success in doubles, recording a 7-3 mark at No. 1 while No. 2 and No. 3 are both 6-6 on the year.

FGCU has won four-straight against Stetson, including a championship-clinching 4-3 victory last season in Fort Myers. The Eagles are now 6-4 all-time against Stetson.

SCOUTING THE OSPREYS
At 8-6, UNF generally relies on the reigning ASUN Player of the Year and No. 58 Jack Findel-Hawkins to set the tone. Findel-Hawkins wrapped up the bulk of non-conference play with a 3-9 record at No. 1 singles but the Ospreys have received positive records at No. 4 and No. 5.

Findel-Hawkins is one-half of the top doubles pairing alongside either Lasse Mucheites or Jefta Kecic. Between the two pairings, UNF is 11-1 from the top doubles spot. In the latest ITA Rankings, Findel-Hawkins and Muscheites checked in at No. 3 nationally. Jonathan Deutriell and Sahil Deshmukh have dominated at No. 3, posting a 9-2 mark.

The Eagles are 4-9 against UNF all-time following last season's dramatic 4-3 comeback win in Jacksonville.

UP NEXT
ASUN play continues as the Eagles hit the road for two match to conclude March. FGCU first meets USC Upstate March 30 in Spartanburg before continuing North to New Jersey to face NJIT April 1.

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 68-51 (.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
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.
 
#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.