Box Score NEW ORLEANS, La. – The FGCU men's tennis team (6-6) dropped a 6-1 decision Thursday to No. 41 Tulane (7-5) at the City Park Tennis Center.
"Tulane played a heck of a match today," said FGCU head men's tennis coach
CJ Weber. "Despite not picking up a win on this spring break, this is exactly what we needed as a team. We got better every match, and we're learning how to step up in a few key positions. The guys are fighting hard and building their chemistry.
I look forward to what's in store for us, especially on Saturday for what will be another very tough match against Penn State. We're definitely looking forward to competing in front of our home crowd!"
The Green Wave took the doubles point to start the day off before winning matches No. 2, 5 and 3 to clinch the overall match.
Redshirt junior
Guglielmo Stefanacci (
Prato, Italy/International School of Florence) rallied at No. 4 to earn the Eagles first point with a 1-6, 6-3, 7-5 victory.
Redshirt junior
Juan Lopez (
Gachancipa, Colombia/ Colegio Virtual Siglo XXI) won his first set 7-6 before falling 6-1. 6-3 at No. 6.
FGCU returns home at 3 p.m. Saturday to host No. 57 Penn State (12-3) at the FGCU Tennis Courts.
Doubles Competition
1. BARRY, Charlie/JACOBSON, Benji (TU) vs.
JOHNSON, Magnus/WILSON, Randy (FGCU) 2-5, unfinished
2. KUENKLER, Fynndef/PETROVIC, Luka def.
SEPULVEDA, Marcelo/ONCINS, Eric (FGCU) 6-4
3. SUAREZ, Billy/DE ALBA Rafael (TU) def.
BRADFORD, Carter/STEFANACCI, Guglielmo (FGCU) 6-3
Singles Competition
1. KUENKLER, Fynn (TU) def.
JOHNSON, Magnus (FGCU) 6-4, 2-6, 6-2
2. PETROVIC, Luka (TU) def.
WILSON, Randy (FGCU) 6-4, 6-1
3. SUAREZ, Billy (TU )def.
SEPULVEDA, Marcelo (FGCU) 6-4, 7-6 (7)
4.
STEFANACCI, Guglielmo (FGCU) def. BANCILA, Alex (TU) 1-6, 6-3, 7-5
5. HOEIJMANS, Luc (TU) def.
BRADFORD, Carter (FGCU) 6-4, 6-4
6. DE ALBA Rafael (TU) def.
LOPEZ, Juan (FGCU) 6-7, 6-1, 6-3
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (2,5,3,1,4,6)
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 12th year, Weber has compiled a 129-101 (.565) overall record and a 53-19 (.732) 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. In 2022, Weber led the Eagles to another ASUN regular-season title while reaching #65 in the ITA rankings, the highest in program history.
E.A.G.L.E. CAMPAIGN
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#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (
https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/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
https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 95 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 15-plus seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11-plus seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 47 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Nine FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport -- including women's basketball (No. 20 in 2021-22 and No. 23 in 2022-23), baseball (No. 24 in 2023), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2022) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as four of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green & 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 3.66 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2022 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 27 consecutive semesters. The past seven semesters (Fall 2019 – Fall 2022) saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher cumulative team GPA. 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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