FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU men's tennis team took down #70 Kennesaw State, 5-2, Sunday afternoon, handing the Owls their first ASUN loss this season. The Eagles improve to 11-6 and 4-1 in league play while KSU falls to 12-5 with a 4-1 ASUN record.

"Today was a fantastic day to be an Eagle!" said head coach CJ Weber. "We responded so well after losing the doubles. We've been working on so many things recently and today was a day that the guys' hard work showed. We still have a lot of work to do for the next few weeks, but I'm very proud  of this team, and I'm very happy for them for this victory."

In doubles, junior Max Damm (Bradenton, Fla./Saint Stephen's Episcopal School) and redshirt-sophomore Magnus Johnson (Naples, Fla./Homeschool/UCF) won 7-5, but the Owls won on courts two and three to take the point.

Things turned around fast for the Eagles in singles as Johnson won on court one, 6-4, 6-4 to tie the match before redshirt-sophomore Guglielmo Stefanacci (Prato, Italy/International School of Florence) claimed victory on court five, 7-5, 6-3 to give the Eagle the lead which they would not give up.

Redshirt-sophomore Randy Wilson (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Miami Palmetto/Louisville) tacked on another point for the Eagles, winning 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 for his fifth consecutive win before redshirt-sophomore Juan Lopez (Gachancipa, Colombia/Colegio Virtual Siglio XXI) clinched the match for FGCU with a 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 win on court six.

Graduate student Juan Montes (Pereira, Colombia/Colegio Lujan) added a cherry on top as he won on court four, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.

FGCU 5, #70 Kennesaw State 2
Singles Action
1.    JOHNSON, Magnus (FGCU) def. Matthew Terry (KSU) 6-4, 6-4
2.    Raul Garcia (KSU) def. SEPULVEDA, Marcelo (FGCU) 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 1-0 (10-7)
3.    WILSON, Randy (FGCU) def. Harvey Conway (KSU) 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
4.    MONTES, Juan (FGCU) def. Kevin Patel (KSU) 6-3, 5-7, 6-3
5.    STEFANACCI, Gugli (FGCU) def. Sergio Ingles (KSU) 7-5, 6-3
6.    LOPEZ, Juan (FGCU) def. Hugo Salmeron (KSU) 6-3, 2-6, 6-4

Doubles Action
1.    JOHNSON, Magnus/DAMM, Max (FGCU) def. Hugo Salmeron/Matthew Terry (KSU) 7-5
2.    Harvey Conway/Raul Garcia (KSU) def. SEPULVEDA, Marcelo/MONTES, Juan (FGCU) 6-4
3.    Sergio Ingles/Seru Tezuka (KSU) def. ONCINS, Eric/WILSON, Randy (FGCU) 7-6 (7-1)

Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (1,5,3,6,4,2)

The Eagles will return to the courts on Friday when they host Lipscomb. 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 114-83 (.577) overall record and a 47-19 (.707) 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 89 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 14+ seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 10 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. 20, 2021-22), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2022) 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 25 consecutive semesters. The past five semesters (Fall 2019 – Fall 2021) 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.