FORT MYERS, Fla. – In its first road contest of the season, the FGCU men's tennis team (1-3) dropped a 5-2 result at the hands of FAU (3-5) on Friday afternoon at the FAU Tennis Complex. The Owls clinched the early doubles point and never trailed from there, though the Eagles were as close as just one point down in the middle of match play.

Senior Felipe Ramirez (Armenia, Colombia) and freshman Juan Lopez (Gachancipa, Colombia) were the only members of the Green and Blue to secure points for the team. Lopez was the first to do so, earning a 6-3, 6-3 win on the sixth court in singles play. His triumph, followed immediately by a Ramirez win on the first court, cut down FAU's lead to just 3-2, but the team was unable to overcome the deficit.

"FAU played a great match today and they have a very good team this year," head coach CJ Weber said. "I think they did exactly what they needed to do to beat us today. For us, today was still a step in the right direction. We have a lot of work to do this season, but this team can improve a lot. If we continue to focus on what we did today, we will be a different team at the end of the year compared to who we are now. We're looking forward to Bethune-Cookman tomorrow."

The Owls opened up today's match with a strong performance in doubles play, earning a 6-1 win on the top court and a 6-4 result on court three to secure the early point. At that time, the match featuring the duo of junior Juan Montes (Pereira, Colombia) and senior Marcelo Tebet (Londrina, Brazil) favored the Eagles 5-4.

After a pair of FAU wins in singles play, Ramirez and Lopez got FGCU on the board with their respective performances. An Owl win at the third flight then clinched the match for the home team and while freshman Guglielmo Stefanacci (Prato, Italy) took his opponent into three sets, FAU ultimately claimed the final available point to secure the 5-2 win.

The Eagles will be back in action tomorrow at 2 p.m. for a match against Bethune-Cookman at the City Island Tennis Courts in Daytona. The all-time history between the teams favors FGCU 8-0. 

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. RAMIREZ, Felipe (FGCU) def. Jason Legall (FAU) 6-2, 7-5
2. #58 Maxime Lapraille (FAU) def. TEBET, Marcelo (FGCU) 6-1, 6-3
3. A. Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. MONTES, Juan (FGCU) 6-4, 6-4
4. Filip Krolo (FAU) def. SAKALAUSKAS,Feliksas (FGCU) 6-0, 6-1
5. Gerard Escandell (FAU) def. STEFANACCI,Guglielmo (FGCU) 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 (10-7)
6. LOPEZ, Juan (FGCU) def. Yovan Lambros (FAU) 6-3, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. Maxime Lapraille/Filip Krolo (FAU) def. RAMIREZ, Felipe/SAKALAUSKAS,Feliksas (FGCU) 6-1
2. Jason Legall/A. Fernandez Horta (FAU) vs. MONTES, Juan/TEBET, Marcelo (FGCU) 4-5, unfinished
3. Yovan Lambros/Thomas Guy (FAU) def. STEFANACCI,Guglielmo/BRADFORD, Carter (FGCU) 6-4

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 94-80 (.517) 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. 

E.A.G.L.E. CAMPAIGN
IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!
 
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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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