FORT MYERS, Fla. – For the fourth-straight match the FGCU men's tennis team claimed the doubles point but for the third time in that stretch the Eagles were unable to hang on to the early lead. FGCU (5-9) looked confident in the early stages against the #46 Princeton Tigers (15-7), only for the home side to drop four singles matches, falling 4-3 Sunday.

"Today was a tough fight," said head coach CJ Weber. "It was also a step in the right direction for us. We didn't get the result we were looking for, but we're playing really well in doubles, and we're just looking for that little click in singles. Today was close."

The Eagles got off to a flying start Sunday against the Tigers thanks to an enthusiastic performance at No. 3 doubles. The pairing of Austin Bates (Marietta, Ga./Pope HS) and Felipe Escobar (Pereira, Colombia/Liceo Frances de Pereira/TCU) broke serve immediately to start the match and broke serve again leading 4-2 to put them on the cusp of winning. The duo finished off their match 6-2 shortly after.

Courts 1 and 2 both went into tiebreakers as the Eagles looked to secure the doubles point. The top pairing of Oliver Landert (Naples, Fla./Florida Virtual School/Florida) and Marcelo Tebet (Londrina, Brazil/Colégio Anglo Americano) clinched doubles with a tough 7-6 match.

Singles again proved to be difficult for the Green and Blue, falling in four-consecutive matches.

Tebet and Landert were the first to drop matches in singles, both falling 6-4 in their first sets. Tebet followed with a 6-1 loss to Davey Roberts at No. 4 while Landert nearly forced a third set, falling just short 7-5 to Ryan Seggerman at No. 2.

The trend of 6-4 defeats continued as the Green and Blue played well in the opening set only for Princeton to pull away late. Ezequiel Cerrini (Sunny Isles Beach, Fla./Homeschool), Escobar, and Mateo Ruiz (Bucaramanga, Colombia/Oklahoma State) all lost 6-4 in tightly contested sets.

Escobar then bounced back, claiming a 6-2 victory in his second set but dropped his third 6-1 at No. 1 to Kial Kaiser.

Cerrini meanwhile fell once again 6-4 before Ruiz and Javier Fernandez (Ibiza, Spain/IES CTEIB) finished the day on a high note. Fernandez continued his recent run of strong play, holding off Kabir Sarita 7-5 in the first set at No. 6 before coming away with a 6-4 win, his eighth in ten matches.

After winning his second set 6-4, Ruiz won a third set tiebreaker 7-6, bringing the final to 4-3.

UP NEXT
The Eagles turn their attention to ASUN play traveling north to face Lipscomb and Kennesaw State. FGCU and Lipscomb meet Thursday at 3 p.m. before the Eagles and Owls face off Saturday at 4 p.m.  

COMPLETE RESULTS
Doubles Results
1) Oliver Landert/Marcelo Tebet (FGCU) def. Luke Gamble/Damian Rodriguez (PRIN) 7-6
2) Mateo Ruiz/Ezequiel Cerrini (FGCU) vs. Ryan Seggerman/Payton Holden (PRIN) 6-6, DNF
3) Austin Bates/Felipe Escobar (FGCU) def. Jimmy Wasserman/Deigo Vives (PRIN) 6-2
Singles Results
1) Kial Kaiser (PRIN) def. Felipe Escobar (FGCU) 6-4, 2-6, 6-1
2) Ryan Seggerman (PRIN) def. Oliver Landert (FGCU) 6-4, 7-5
3) Luke Gamble (PRIN) def. Ezequiel Cerrini (FGCU) 6-4, 6-4
4) Davey Roberts (PRIN) def. Marcelo Tebet (FGCU) 6-4, 6-1
5) Mateo Ruiz (FGCU) def. Diego Vives (PRIN) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6
6) Javier Fernandez (FGCU) def. Kabir Sarita (PRIN) 7-5, 6-4
Order of Finish: Doubles (3,1), Singles (4,2,1,3,6,5)

CJ WEBER
FGCU is led by CJ Weber who has coached 26 ASUN All-Conference selections since joining the Green and Blue in 2011. In his sixth year, Weber has compiled a 78-65 (.549) overall record and a 29-15 (.694) record in ASUN play. In 2014-15, Weber guided the Eagles to their first-ever ASUN Championship and first-ever ASUN 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. FGCU again won the ASUN Championship in 2017, advancing to its second NCAA Tournament.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
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#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.