FGCU Men's Tennis: A-SUN Conference Tournament Preview

As the season comes to a close, the FGCU men's tennis (8-11, 3-3 A-SUN) prepares for the A-SUN Conference Tournament hosted by UNF.


On the men's side, the standing are as noted with the teams' overall and conference standings for the tournament as well:
1. UNF (11-9, 6-0 A-SUN)
2. Stetson (17-3, 5-1 A-SUN)
3. FGCU (8-11, 3-3 A-SUN)
4. Lipscomb (8-11, 3-3 A-SUN)
5. Kennesaw (8-10, 2-4 A-SUN)
6. NJIT (9-10, 1-5 A-SUN)

USC Upstate (6-18, 1-5 A-SUN) did not qualify based on their overall record.

Farewell Upstate:
As it looks, both tennis teams for Upstate have finished their last season as a member of the A-SUN Conference and at the start of the 2018-19 season, Upstate will be moving from the A-SUN to the Big South Conference due to travel costs.

Last Time Out:
The men faced Stetson in their last regular season matchup, but fell 2-5.

Award Status:

Senior Austin Bates, junior Javier Fernandez and sophomore Felipe "Pipe" Ramirez were all named on the A-SUN All-Conference Second Team. This was Bates and Fernandez's second and third times on winning the recognition.

Bracket Breakdown:
The men claimed the No. 3 seed in the tournament for the second straight season and will face No. 6 seed NJIT in the quarterfinals. UNF and Stetson will have a first round bye in the tournament.

UNF, who is the No. 1 seed and the A-SUN regular season champions, will await the winner between Lipscomb and Kennesaw while Stetson, the No. 2 seed, await the winner between FGCU and NJIT. This will be the second straight season that the men will play in the quarterfinals.

The tournament will take place at UNF. Lipscomb and Kennesaw will each other at 9 A.M. while FGCU and NJIT play at 11:30 A.M. on Friday.

The winner of the tournament will claim an automatic bid and represent the A-SUN in the national tournament in Salem, N.C.