BOCA RATON, Fla. – Looking to bounce back from a tough loss yesterday, the FGCU men's tennis team came up just short at FAU, Saturday, falling to the Owls, 4-3. The Eagles fall to 2-2 on the season while FAU remains undefeated at 4-0.

"Today was a tough one," said head coach CJ Weber. "We won a really exciting doubles point, but in all honesty, I just don't think we could handle these two tough matches back-to-back. FAU played a great disciplined physical match, and I just don't think we had the juice this early in the season. We will focus on getting in better shape. I like this group, and we just have to make sure this doesn't get us down. We're still at the beginning."

The match started at 10 a.m., but after one game was completed on each doubles court, play was suspended for nearly two hours as it rained. When competition resumed, redshirt-sophomore Randy Wilson (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Miami Palmetto/Louisville) and sophomore Eric Oncins (Orlando, Fla./Montverde Academy) cruised to a 6-2 victory on court three.

After FAU took the match on court two, redshirt-sophomore Magnus Johnson (Naples, Fla./Homeschool/UCF) and junior Max Damm (Bradenton, Fla./Saint Stephen's Episcopal School) forced a tiebreak on court one, which duo in Green and Blue took 7-3.

In singles, the Owls took a 2-1 lead in the match with wins on courts five and six, but Wilson tied it back up with a 7-6 (4), 6-4 win over Nicholas Jadoun on court four.

After FAU retook a 3-2 lead with victory on court three, Johnson continued his perfect start to the spring as he tied the match once again with a 6-1, 7-5 win on court one over #103 Carles Sarrio.

On court two, graduate student Juan Montes (Pereiro, Colombia/Colegio Lujan) dropped the first set to #114 Kevin Huempfner, but had the second set tied at five. However, Montes could not force a third set as Huempfner took the next two games to clinch the match for the Owls.

FAU 4, FGCU 3
Singles Competition
1.    JOHNSON, Magnus (FGCU) def. Sarrio, Carles (FAU-M) 6-1, 7-5
2.    Huempfner, Kevin (FAU-M) def. MONTES, Juan (FGCU) 6-4, 7-5
3.    Fernandez Horta, A (FAU-M) def. SEPULVEDA, Marcelo (FGCU) 6-4, 7-5
4.    WILSON, Randy (FGCU) def. Jadoun, Nicolas (FAU-M) 7-6 (7-4), 6-4
5.    Escandell, Gerard (FAU-M) def. STEFANACCI, Gugli (FGCU) 6-1, 6-2
6.    Stodder, Finn (FAU-M) def. LOPEZ, Juan (FGCU) 6-1, 6-2

Doubles Competition
1.    JOHNSON, Magnus/DAMM, Max (FGCU) def. Huempfner, Kevin/Krolo, Filip (FAU-M) 7-6 (7-3)
2.    Sarrio, Carles/Robbins, Hunter (FAU-M) def. MONTES, Juan/SEPULVEDA, Marcelo (FGCU) 6-4
3.    ONCINS, Eric/WILSON, Randy (FGCU) def. Fernandez Horta, A/Stodder, Finn (FAU-M) 6-2

The Eagles will return to the courts on February 4th when they host Keiser. First serve from the FGCU Tennis Complex is set for 5 p.m.

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.

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 105-89 (.541) overall record and a 43-19 (.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 87 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 14+ seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 43 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 25, 2021-22), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2021) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. 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 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 24 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, 2020 Fall, and 2021 Spring semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA in each. 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.