FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU men's tennis team (0-0, 0-0 ASUN) will kick off its 2021 slate this Saturday, Jan. 23 with a match against FAU (0-1, 0-0 C-USA) at the FGCU Tennis Complex. The contest is set for a 5 p.m. start and will be open to fans at a limited capacity. In order to promote social distancing, fans are encouraged to bring their own foldable chairs or other forms of outdoor seating. All attendees must wear masks at all times and will be required to adhere to CDC guidelines.
This year, the Eagles are led by a pair of returning All-ASUN picks from the 2019 season. Senior
Felipe Ramirez (Armenia, Colombia/Florida Virtual School), who captured Second Team honors that year, has landed on a conference team in each of his campaigns with the Green & Blue, while junior
Juan Montes (Pereira, Colombia/Colegio Lujan) is back as a former First Team selection.
Ramirez enters the season with 100 career wins, the fourth-most in the program's history, and needs just seven more to surpass former teammate Javier Fernandez (2015-19) for third all-time. Senior
Feliksas Sakalauskas (Palanga, Lithuania/Vilniaus Zveryno Gimnazija/Virginia Tech) will also look to climb the FGCU record book after a 2019 season in which he racked up the second-most overall wins in single-season history (50).
In total, head coach
CJ Weber returned seven members of last year's squad, whose season was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Former Eagle
Marcelo Tebet, a member of that team, has returned as Weber's assistant coach. Rounding out the roster is a group of six newcomers, which features a pair of transfers in
Magnus Johnson (Naples, Fla./Homeschool/UCF) and
Randy Wilson (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Miami Palmetto/Louisville). The group will be on the hunt for the team's fourth ASUN title, as well as its fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament since making its debut in 2015.
Saturday's match will be the 14th in the history between the two teams, which currently favors the Owls 9-4. FGCU will look to defeat FAU for the first time since the 2015-16 season, when the team grabbed a 4-3 victory while on the road in Boca Raton.
The Owls will make their way to Fort Myers in search of their first win of the season, having dropped their opener against No. 9 Florida by a score of 7-0. The match was highlighted by freshman Finn Stodder, who forced #68 Blaise Bicknell into three sets on the sixth court of singles play. He and classmate Gerard Escandell barely missed a win in doubles play, falling 7-6 to UF's No. 3 duo.
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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
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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 97-82 (.541) 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!
#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 82 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 13 seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just nine 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 3.43 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 22 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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