FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU men's tennis team (11-8, 6-0 ASUN) clinched at least a share of the 2019 ASUN Regular Season Championship with a 6-1 win over Liberty (11-10, 5-1 ASUN) on Thursday night at the FGCU Tennis Complex. With tonight's win, the Eagles have now locked up the No. 1 seed in the 2019 ASUN Championship. 

"I love this team and we're having a lot of fun right now," head coach CJ Weber said. "We won a big match today and it's fun to be able to celebrate that. I'm really proud of this team overall."

For the sixth-straight match, the Eagles secured the doubles point for an early 1-0 advantage. The duo of junior Marcelo Tebet (Londrina, Brazil/Colégio Anglo Americano) and sophomore Juan Montes (Pereira, Colombia) garnered a 6-4 victory at the second flight. Juniors Feliksas Sakalauskas (Palanga, Lithuania/Virginia Tech) and Felipe Ramirez (Armenia, Colombia/Florida Virtual School) followed up with a 6-4 triumph of their own at court No. 3 to earn the point for the Green and Blue.

At the time doubles play ended, senior Felipe Escobar (Pereira, Colombia/Liceo Frances de Pereira/TCU) and Mateo Ruiz (Bucaramagna, Colombia/Oklahoma State) were knotted up at 5-5 on the first court after coming back from being down 4-2.

Tebet earned a straight-set 6-1, 6-1 win at the second court to continue the scoring for FGCU. Senior Javier Fernandez (Ibiza, Spain/IES CTEIB) claimed his eighth-straight match when he defeated his competitor 6-1, 6-4 at the sixth flight, putting the team on the verge of clinching.

Escobar clinched the match and the regular season title for the Eagles with a hard-fought 6-1, 6-4 triumph at the third flight. The Green and Blue officially secured the match with a score of 4-0.

Sakalauskas tacked onto the scoring with a 6-4, 6-4 straight-set win on the fifth court and Ramirez made it a 6-0 match with a 10-8 tiebreaker win in the third set on court No. 2.

The Flames claimed their first and only point of the night with a 13-11 tiebreaker win in the third set at the first court. Montes competed in a hard-fought battle but ultimately fell to Liberty's Nicaise Muamba.

This is the third regular season championship for the men's tennis team. The Eagles claimed the title in 2015 and 2016. Depending on how both FGCU and Liberty finish the week, the Eagles have a chance to outright claim the regular season title.

Results
Singles competition
1. Nicaise Muamba (LIBERTY) def. MONTES, Juan (FGCU) 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 (11-13)
2. RAMIREZ, Felipe (FGCU) def. Josh Wilson (LIBERTY) 6-3, 4-6, 1-0 (10-8)
3. ESCOBAR, Felipe (FGCU) def. Chase Burton (LIBERTY) 6-1, 6-4
4. TEBET, Marcelo (FGCU) def. Ian Sturgill (LIBERTY) 6-1, 6-1
5. SAKALAUSKAS,Feliksas (FGCU) def. Eddie Gutierrez (LIBERTY) 6-4, 6-4
6. FERNANDEZ, Javier (FGCU) def. Vince Salas (LIBERTY) 6-1, 6-4
Order of finish: 4, 6, 3, 5, 2, 1

Doubles competition
1. ESCOBAR, Felipe/RUIZ, Mateo (FGCU) vs. Nicaise Muamba/Chase Burton (LIBERTY) 5-5, unfinished
2. TEBET, Marcelo/MONTES, Juan (FGCU) def. Josh Wilson/Ian Sturgill (LIBERTY) 6-4
3. SAKALAUSKAS,Feliksas/RAMIREZ, Felipe (FGCU) def. Vince Salas/Steve Mundt (LIBERTY) 6-4
Order of finish: 2, 3

Up Next
The Eagles will compete at the FGCU Tennis Complex for the final time this season with a match against Kennesaw State at 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 13. The team will honor its four seniors - Ezequiel Cerrini, Felipe Escobar, Javier Fernandez and Mateo Ruiz - between doubles and singles play.

FGCU has already clinched a spot, as well as the No. 1 seed, in the 2019 ASUN Men's Tennis Championship Thursday, April 18 – Saturday, April 20 at the Mandy Stoll Tennis Center in DeLand.

FOLLOW ALONG
For complete coverage of FGCU men's tennis follow us on Twitter & Instagram @FGCU_MTEN and visit www.FGCUAthletics.com where full recaps and results will be available at the end of the competition.

CJ WEBER
FGCU is led by CJ Weber, who has coached 29 ASUN All-Conference selections since joining the Green and Blue in 2011. In his seventh year, Weber has compiled an 91-76 (.540) overall record and a 36-18 (.655) 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 appearance in program history. 
 
#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.
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 76 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 11+ seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just seven+ seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 34 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including both men's and women's soccer again in 2018. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best 6th-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the Spring, 2018 and had an ASUN Conference and State of Florida best five teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport.  The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours – being recognized as one of two runner-ups for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
 
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