NASHVILLE – The FGCU men's tennis team (10-8, 5-0 ASUN) picked up its fifth-straight win in conference play with a 5-2 victory over Lipscomb (7-11, 2-3 ASUN) Saturday afternoon at the Huston-Marsh-Griffith Tennis Center.

"It's always tough to play Lipscomb at their place," head coach CJ Weber said. "They fought really hard today and didn't give up even though we were ahead the whole match. The team overcame some great challenges and I'm really proud of how we are competing. We need to keep focusing on the right things."

The Eagles built off their dominance in doubles play and captured the point for the fifth-straight match. The duo of juniors Feliksas Sakalauskas (Palanga, Lithuania/Virginia Tech) and Felipe Ramirez (Armenia, Colombia/Florida Virtual School) started things off with a 6-2 win at the third flight. Junior Marcelo Tebet (Londrina, Brazil/Colégio Anglo Americano) and sophomore Juan Montes (Pereira, Colombia) sealed the point with a 6-1 triumph on the second court, giving FGCU an early 1-0 edge.

Sakalauskas brought the Green and Blue up to a 2-0 lead with a 6-1, 6-0 win at the fifth court in singles play. Senior Javier Fernandez (Ibiza, Spain/IES CTEIB) extended his winning streak to seven matches with a straight-set victory at the sixth flight, and classmate Felipe Escobar (Pereira, Colombia/Liceo Frances de Pereira/TCU) dug out a 6-0 victory in the third set on court No. 3 that put the Green and Blue up 4-0 and clinched the match.

Tebet earned the last points of the day for FGCU with a 7-5 win in set three on the fourth court. The Bisons got on the board by claiming the last two points available at courts one and two. Montes battled back after dropping the first set but could not finish against Lipscomb's Victor Chaw. Ramirez fell in a third-set super tiebreaker to Pablo Caffarena.

The last time the Eagles began conference play 5-0 was the 2015-16 season. That year, the Green and Blue finished the regular season undefeated.

Results
Singles competition
1. Victor Chaw (LIP-M) def. MONTES, Juan (FGCU) 6-2, 2-6, 6-4
2. Pablo Caffarena (LIP-M) def. RAMIREZ, Felipe (FGCU) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)
3. ESCOBAR, Felipe (FGCU) def. Jorge Ortegon (LIP-M) 1-6, 6-4, 6-0
4. TEBET, Marcelo (FGCU) def. Pedro Uribe (LIP-M) 6-2, 1-6, 7-5
5. SAKALAUSKAS,Feliksas (FGCU) def. Jake Penny (LIP-M) 6-1, 6-0
6. FERNANDEZ, Javier (FGCU) def. David Skrabut (LIP-M) 6-3, 6-3
Order of finish: 5, 6, 3, 4, 1, 2

Doubles competition
1. Victor Chaw/Pablo Caffarena (LIP-M) vs. ESCOBAR, Felipe/RUIZ, Mateo (FGCU) 3-2, unfinished
2. TEBET, Marcelo/MONTES, Juan (FGCU) def. Francesco Tacconi/Jake Penny (LIP-M) 6-1
3. SAKALAUSKAS,Feliksas/RAMIREZ, Felipe (FGCU) def. Pedro Uribe/Michael Tougher (LIP-M) 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 2

Up Next
After their three-match road swing, the Eagles will return to the FGCU Tennis Complex to take on the Liberty Flames (11-9, 5-0 ASUN) at 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 11. The Flames are the only other team undefeated in ASUN Conference play and are currently on a five-match winning streak. This will mark the second meeting between the two teams; the programs faced off in Miami back in 2015 and the Green and Blue earned a 6-1 victory. The next two matches against Liberty and Kennesaw State (April 13) will determine whether or not the Eagles can bring home a regular season championship, which they are currently in line for. 

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 90-76 (.540) overall record and a 35-18 (.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 75 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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