FORT MYERS, Fla. – For the first time this season, the FGCU men's tennis team was able to get into the win column after it picked up a 6-1 victory over the Florida A&M Rattlers on Saturday night at the FGCU Tennis Complex.

"I thought today was overall a good match," head coach CJ Weber said. "It was a little unique with FAMU only having five guys. Sometimes, that can be a distraction because it's outside the norm. The guys, however, did a good job of using that to our advantage. They got them down early and used that momentum to close things out quickly. I thought the guys overall did a good job of taking care of business."

In doubles play, FAMU (0-5) was unable to field a No. 3 doubles team, meaning that FGCU had to win just one match in order to clinch the early point. The duo of senior Marcelo Tebet (Londrina, Brazil) and sophomore Juan Montes (Pereira, Colombia) achieved said feat for the Green and Blue by earning a 6-3 triumph on court two. Seniors Felipe Ramirez (Armenia, Colombia) and Feliksas Sakalauskas (Palanga, Lithuania) were leading their opponents 4-3 at the time the point was secured.

Montes continued his winning streak in singles play, where he quickly grabbed a 6-0, 6-1 win over Robert Hayden. Since the Rattlers were also unable to play at the No. 6 singles spot, Montes' win put FGCU up 3-0.

Within minutes of the first singles win, sophomore Carter Bradford (Wesley Chapel, Fla.) officially clinched the match for the Eagles with a straight-set victory at the fifth flight. The triumph marked Bradford's first in singles play as a member of the Green and Blue.

Tebet had a close match on the top court, as FAMU's Jean-Baptiste Mbong pushed the second frame to a tiebreaker. Ultimately, the senior defeated Mbong 7-2 to push FGCU out to a 5-0 edge.

While Bradford, Montes and Tebet finished off their competitors in two sets, the rest of the Eagles battled into three. After dropping his second frame, Sakalauskas bounced back and grabbed a 10-2 win in the third set to secure court two.

The match between freshman Guglielmo Stefanacci (Prato, Italy) and the Rattlers' Eliott Ekindi also went into a third set, where Ekindi earned a 10-3 triumph to prevent the Rattlers from being shut out entirely.

With the win, the Eagles are now 65-65 all-time against opponents that hail from the Sunshine State.

For complete coverage of FGCU men's tennis, follow the Eagles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FGCU_MTen and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU men's tennis or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.

Results
Singles competition
1. TEBET, Marcelo (FGCU) def. MBONG,jJean-Baptiste (FAMUM) 6-4, 7-6 (7-2)
2. SAKALAUSKAS,Feliksas (FGCU) def. CERVINKA,Petr (FAMUM) 6-2, 6-7 (3-7), 10-2
3. MONTES, Juan (FGCU) def. HAYDEN,Robert (FAMUM) 6-0, 6-1
4. EKINDI,Eliott (FAMUM) def. STEFANACCI,Guglielmo (FGCU) 0-6, 7-6 (7-3), 10-3
5. BRADFORD, Carter (FGCU) def. STURGIS,Rodeny (FAMUM) 6-2, 6-2
Order of finish: (3, 5, 2, 1, 4)

Doubles competition
1. RAMIREZ, Felipe/SAKALAUSKAS,Feliksas (FGCU) def. CERVINKA,Petr/EKINDI,Eliott (FAMUM) 4-3
2. TEBET, Marcelo/MONTES, Juan (FGCU) def. MBONG,jJean-Baptiste/HAYDEN,Robert (FAMUM) 6-3
Order of finish: (2)



CJ WEBER
FGCU is led by three-time ASUN Coach of the Year CJ Weber, who has coached 32 ASUN All-Conference selections since joining the Green and Blue in 2011. In his seventh year, Weber has compiled a 94-79 (.543) overall record and a 38-18 (.672) 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 a perfect ASUN regular season in both 2015 and 2016, finishing with conference titles as well as a Coach of the Year honor for Weber. FGCU again won the 2017 ASUN Championship and made its second NCAA appearance. The Eagles returned to the mountaintop by claiming the 2019 regular season and tournament championships. Weber earned his third ASUN Coach of the Year honor and led the Green and Blue to their third trip to the NCAA Tournament. 

#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April 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 80 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 12 seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just eight seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 36 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 sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2018 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for twenty consecutive semesters. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
 
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