ORLANDO, Fla. – The FGCU men's tennis team (0-4, 0-0 ASUN) dropped its Friday afternoon match against No. 19 UCF (4-2, 1-0 American), as the Eagles fell 7-0 while on the road in Orlando. The team was led by redshirt-freshman Magnus Johnson (Naples, Fla./Homeschool/UCF), redshirt-freshman Randy Wilson (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Miami Palmetto/Louisvill) and freshman Alessandro Conca (Milan, Italy/ISMC Milano), as they each took their singles opponents into three sets.

"Despite the 7-0 score, today was actually a huge step in the right direction for our program," head coach CJ Weber said. "UCF is incredibly good and they took care of business the way they should have. But we learned a lot about ourselves today. Four or five of the points were incredibly tight. We just couldn't quite get the win in any of those spots, unfortunately. If we keep playing and competing like this though, great things are ahead for this team."

Though doubles play was close, the Knights ultimately earned the early 1-0 edge thanks to a pair of wins on the first and second courts. When the lead was clinched, the team of Johnson and sophomore Max Damm (Bradenton, Fla./Saint Stephens Episcopal School) trailed by just one point on court No. 3, as their match was suspended with UCF ahead 6-5.

UCF continued to build upon its advantage in singles play, earning back-to-back wins at the second and sixth spots. The victory on court No. 2 was earned when an FGCU player retired, while the result at court No. 6 was claimed in straight sets. The defeat of redshirt-freshman Guglielmo Stefanacci (Prato, Italy/International School of Florence) at the fifth spot then clinched the match for the Knights at 4-0.

Though he battled back to a second-set victory, Wilson then dropped a 3-6, 6-3, 3-6 result that put UCF up 5-0. Both Johnson and Conca played their third sets as 10-point tiebreakers. They were each handed an 8-10 loss, boosting the No. 19 Knights to their sweep.

FGCU will look to bounce back from the match tomorrow when the Eagles face off against Miami. The competition is slated for a 1 p.m. start at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center in Coral Gables.

Results
Singles competition
1. #16 Gabriel Decamps (UCF) def. JOHNSON, Magnus (FGCU) 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 10-8
2. Alan Rubio (UCF) def. RAMIREZ, Felipe (FGCU) 6-3, 3-1, retired
3. #52 Juan Pablo Mazzuchi (UCF) def. WILSON, Randy (FGCU) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
4. Trey Hilderbrand (UCF) def. CONCA, Alessandro (FGCU) 6-4, 6-7 (7-9), 10-8
5. Kento Yamada (UCF) def. STEFANACCI, Gugli (FGCU) 6-3, 6-3
6. Mikhail Sokolovskiy (UCF) def. MACIEL, Pedro (FGCU) 6-3, 6-1
Order of finish: 2, 6, 5, 3, 4, 1

Doubles competition
1. Trey Hilderbrand/Gabriel Decamps (UCF) def. RAMIREZ, Felipe/WILSON, Randy (FGCU) 6-4
2. Juan Pablo Mazzuchi/Bogdan Pavel (UCF) def. MONTES, Juan/MACIEL, Pedro (FGCU) 7-5
3. Mikhail Sokolovskiy/Kento Yamada (UCF) vs. JOHNSON, Magnus/DAMM, Max (FGCU) 6-5, unfinished
Order of finish: 1, 2

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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 97-85 (.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. 

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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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