Categories
USACFC

USACFC Championships 2024

4.13.24 – 4.14.24

Women’s Foil

After a stunning win at SIFA earlier this year, women’s foil arrived at CFCs ready to win some bouts. The TC Trio of Lucy  “Gecko” Kasper ‘24, Angela “Luna” Liu ‘25, and Karino “Jasmine” Gibson ‘24 all came eager to fence and kick butt. Women’s foil took 25th place in the team event, with all three fencers doing a great job. In the individual event, Gecko placed 29th out of 106 fencers, using her unbreakable defense to parry any attack and beat up her opponents. Luna fenced with patience and grace, winning many bouts. Karino looked to have cast hexes upon her opponents, defeating one unwitting fencer 5-0 in a team bout. Women’s foil delivered a gutsy performance at CFCs, and has a bright future ahead. We will miss Karino’s fearless leadership as president and Gecko’s infinite wisdom as co-captain, but even as they graduate, a new generation of women’s foil talent is ready to be unleashed on the competition, carefully trained up by our seniors and ready to put the hurt on all the schools they face.

Women’s Epee

Going into the Collegiate Fencing Championship tournament, Women’s epee had an incredibly strong team made up of Rebekah “Opal” Gresham ‘25, Sarah “Tarot” Gresham ‘25, and Anna “Lotus” Saal ‘27. On Saturday they showcased their speed and strength to the competition when all three won all bouts in their pools, with many overwhelming victories. All three went into direct eliminations with very good seedings and out of a tableau of 128, all three made it to the top 16 bracket. In the bracket of 16, Lotus fenced very hard against an opponent and showcased her dynamic parries and quick lunges. Although she ended up losing and placing 10th, the bout was very hard fought and Lotus displayed amazing fortitude and never-ending determination. Tarot advanced to the bracket of 8, in which she lost to an incredibly difficult opponent by only a couple of touches, ultimately placing 5th. Opal continued to sweep through the competition collecting wins until she was in the finals bout. She ended up having to fence an opponent that she had lost to last year in direct eliminations, but she refused to back down. In a bout that was neck-in-neck until the last period, Opal focused very hard, making multiple beautiful arm touches and perfectly timed parries. Despite the opponents best efforts to fleche and make touches, Opal won the bout by being even quicker and stronger, taking home the first place medal. On Sunday, despite all members being very tired and sore, women’s epee refused to lose. Similar to the first day, Opal used her speed and agility to land many arm touches and contentious in-fights, Tarot used her directional changes to bait and counterattack effectively against opponents, and Lotus used her patience to land perfectly timed parries and immaculate lunges against her opponents. They fenced Michigan State University and then Dartmouth College, winning both 5-0 and 5-1 respectively. In the semi-finals, they fenced the University of California Santa Barbara winning with an impressive 5-2 victory. The finals bout was against the University of Massachusetts Amherst, a tough opponent, but women’s epee fought and coached each other to an astounding 5-1 win. Lotus, Tarot, and Opal all fenced using their unique styles, extreme speed, and determination to bring home a first place team medal and trophy.

Women’s Saber

Elizabeth “Horizon” Lawless, Sophia “Barracuda” Lee, and Delia “Nightshade” Figlozzi came to the Collegiate Fencing Championships ready to do their very best! Barracuda and Nightshade, although drafted from foil, trained diligently and performed well in a new weapon environment. Nightshade, struck by illness, still stood her ground on the strip, scoring consistently and challenging any opponent that crossed her path. Barracuda’s speed and aggression consistently stunned foes. The two foilists learned much about the ways of saber in such a short time, and their skill and knowledge of the weapon dramatically increased over the course of the two day tournament! It was Horizon’s first experience at a collegiate tournament– her speed and phenomenal parries placed her in the top 32 for the individual event! Together, the three did very well and strengthened their friendship along the way.

Men’s Foil

In a break from last year’s tradition, Men’s Foil arrived at CFCs with a team of mens foilists. Arriving Saturday still tired from setup the night before, the trio of Jack ‘ Yeti’ Bratton ‘24, Nick ‘Osiris’ Reeder ‘24, and Thomas ‘Vice’ Mahnken ‘24 suited up so they could begin waiting for their flighted pools to begin as quickly as possible. Several hours later, they emerged from pools seeded 5th, 42nd, and 61st respectively. Vice would fall in the first round, Osiris would progress to the second round before being eliminated by #23, and Yeti would relentlessly plow through the bracket, only being stopped in the semi-finals. Sunday began just as Saturday had: with about 5 hours of sleep and confusion over strip assignments. Beginning the day seeded 11th, the squad’s first opponent was -BYE-, seeded 54th. After -BYE- failed to appear at the strip, the round was given the W&M. Their second opponent, University of Massachusetts Amherst (henceforth referred to as UMass) put up a valiant struggle which fencing historians have since likened to the final stand of the Spartans at the battle of Thermopylae. After a 5-1 loss in the initial bout, W&M would win the next 5 bouts, securing both victory and progression to the next round. Their third second opponent, University of Florida posed an even tougher challenge. Facing a 4-2 disadvantage after the first 6 bouts, all three fenced valiantly. Yeti secured a decisive 5-1 win, bringing the overall score to 4-3. Vice fenced what he described as “the best I have ever fenced since beginning college” in a bout that sadly was not recorded, evening the score at 4-4. Osiris, bringing it home, secured the win for W&M by winning the 9th and final bout of the round. Progressing to the round of 8, the next opponent was Cornell. The trio fenced intrepidly, but through a combination of soreness and the Cornell team being seeded 3rd, they were forced to accept defeat. As disappointing a loss as it was, the W&M Foil Dream Team™ would end the day placed 8th, a marked improvement over last year’s result and a result that all three graduating seniors can be proud of.

Men’s Epee

Men’s epee rocked up to CFCs with their sights set on victory as Armin “D.O.W. Jones” Bagha ‘24, Jake “Merlin” Schapiro ‘24, Nolan “Titan” Coughlin ‘25, and Eric “Helios” Montesi ‘26 came to win bouts and have fun. Armin was all skill, cool and calculated as he dismantled his opponents. Jake’s counters and control of distance left his opponents befuddled. Nolan was powerful and precise as he dominated the competition. Eric used tempo and timing to break any defense. In the individual event, all of our boys dominated their pools, and everyone fenced hard in their DE bouts. Armin was finally unleashed upon CFCs, and kept up  the incredible form he has shown all season as he battled through injury to take 5th in the individual event. Going into the team event seeded sixth out of 37 schools, men’s epee carved their way through their first two opponents, dropping only two bouts. Tragically, they fell in a hard-fought series against Texas that went down to the wire, ending in a 4-5 loss. Hampered by injury and exhaustion, our boys left it all on the strip as they fenced off for placement, ultimately taking 8th in the team event. It was the last collegiate event for Armin and Jake, and our two seniors fenced brilliantly. Their great performances capped off the best season men’s epee has had in years. Armin’s words of wisdom and Jake’s angelic singing will be missed at future competitions, but their legacy of victory has the squad determined to continue winning at every event they go to. As a new era begins in men’s epee, the culture they established will continue to produce the hardest working, somewhat conditioned, most unselfish and stylish squad in Virginia.

Men’s Saber

Coming in hot off the heels of a strong performance at MACFA Champs, Men’s saber showed up and showed out, finishing in 14th place as a team. Evan “Duke” Jackson ‘25, Connor “Lancelot” Cassidy ‘25, and Ryan “Chronos” Rauscher ‘27 all fenced brilliantly at CFCs. Chronos used his massive frame and blinding speed on attack and defense to thrash his opponents, finishing 19th out of 142 fencers in the individual. Always calculating, Duke balanced aggression with clinical defense as he stayed one step ahead of his opponent’s tactics, knowing what they would do before they did it. Lancelot used his quickness in the box, strong parries, and the LanceLockout™ to befuddle his opponent, his unorthodox style proving too much for even experienced fencers to handle. Men’s saber finished the best season they’ve had in years by finishing 11 spots ahead of their CFCs result last year, showing vast improvement and promising great things to come, as everyone on the squad is returning, hungry for greater success. Vorp?

Categories
MACFA

MACFA Champs 2024

3.3.24

Men’s Foil

At MACFA Champs, Jack “Yeti” Bratton ‘24, Thomas “Vice” Mahnken ‘24, and Dale “Sandman” DeVinney ‘27 gave it their all, sweeping Hunter and Rowan on their way to a 9th place finish. Like he’s done all season, Yeti terrorized his opponents, controlling distance with ease to land superhuman counterattacks. Vice used his trademark bladework to dominate his opponents’ blades, and Sandman, competing at his first Champs, used speed and unorthodox tactics to baffle his opponents, taking several wins against varsity teams. In the individual event, Yeti took home 8th place, adding to an incredible run of medals in only one competitive season. After beating NCAA varsity teams all season, men’s foil is ready and excited to take on the collegiate clubs of USACFCs in a few weeks.

Men’s Epee

Fueled by delicious Italian subs, Nolan “Titan” Coughlin ‘25, Jake “Merlin” Schapiro ‘24, and Eric “Helios” Montesi ‘26 put on a strong performance at MACFA Champs. At his first Champs, Helios used speed and agility that few were able to defend against. In his final Champs, Merlin was as patient as ever, allowing him to get brilliant counterattacks and secure magical ripostes. Anchoring the squad was Titan, who, as always, dazzled with his dynamic flèches and automatic parries. With impressive performances across the board, Men’s Epee went 9-5 on the day and finished in 7th place, with each fencer taking several varsity wins. Titan and Helios both qualified for the individual tournament, where Helios took home the 8th place medal after upsetting the 4th seed in his first DE. Men’s epee showcased some great fencing at MACFA Champs, and are all looking forward to their final competition at USACFCs.

Men’s Saber

With Ryan “Chronos” Rauscher ‘27 on A strip, Connor “Lancelot” Cassidy ‘25 on B strip, and Nick “Osiris” Reeder ‘24 on C strip, the men’s saber squad put up their most successful champs performance in recent memory. Chronos used his clean form and creative tactics to win several bouts. His strong showing was enough to lead him on to the highly competitive individual tournament. Lancelot used his unorthodox style and leaps to be a dependable B strip, also winning lots of bouts. Despite primarily being a foilist, Osiris did exceptionally well, using his outstanding footwork to achieve many wins. Of the 14 other schools at the event, W&M beat 8 of them, putting them in the top half of the leaderboard, at 7th place. Of the 14 series of the day, their upset win against Rutgers had to be the most exciting. The other victories were against Lafayette, Army, Rowan, Yeshiva, Navy, Hunter, and UMD. With most of the schools in MACFA being varsity and having coaches, these impressive achievements bode well for the future of men’s saber, on top of an already exceptional season.

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NIWFA

NIWFA 2024

3.2.24

Women’s Foil

Lucia “Gecko” Kasper ‘24, Karino Gibson ‘24, Sarah “Medusa” Terpenning ‘27, and Delia “Nightshade” Figlozzi ‘27 each competed valiantly for women’s foil. Gecko did a bang up job using sneaky parry ripostes so extraordinarily that an opponent cried in anguish. She then proceeded to qualify for the individual event, finishing in the top 16 women’s foilists! Medusa’s decisive blade actions and fantastic footwork led her to victory in more than half her bouts at her second collegiate tournament! Karino fenced her heart out, consistently scoring against varsity fencers and winning 4 out of 7 bouts after proposing marriage to an opponent! Coming back from an injury, Nightshade fearlessly competed in her first collegiate tournament and won half of her bouts! Together the four fenced ferociously, putting their blood, sweat, and tears into their incredible defeat of 6 other teams! Go woil! 

Women’s Sabre

Katie “Sparrow” Richardson , Angela “Luna” Liu, and Sophia “Barracuda” Lee on C strip learned a lot about saber as they flew, slashed and got touches. Sparrow, a mostly epee fencer, carried the A strip with her speed and quick thinking. Luna and Barracuda, grafted from the foil squad, grew in their sabre skills as they won touches against club teams. Luna, in the B strip, kept cool and used her understanding of parries in addition to sabre speed. In the C strip, Barracuda, like machine learning artificial intelligence, improved throughout the tournament, increases her amount of touches against each team. Overall, the women’s sabre had a fantastic time bonding and learning a new weapon!

Women’s Epee

NIWFA champs! Sarah “Tarot” Gresham ‘25, Rebekah “Opal” Gresham ‘25 and Anna “Lotus” Saal ‘27 emerged from the team event with a whopping 40 victories, 89% win rate, and an indicator of +108. Defeating every other school (including numerous NCAA competitors), the W&M women’s epee team were responsible for a major upset through their defeat of the fifteen other competitors. All three had powerful individual win rates and indicators, allowing Tarot, Opal, and Lotus to all advance to the individual rounds (the only school to have all three of their epee fencers advance). In the table of 16, Opal defeated Lotus and placed sixth. Tarot had a strong performance that took her into the finals and a second place medal. With an impressive medal count and a trophy, W&M wepee has proved to be a dominating force this season!

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MACFA

MACFA BvC 2024

2.18.24

Men’s Foil

Men’s Foil had quite an eventful time at MACFA BvC. Patrick “Apostle” Feagin, Jawand “Bronco” Singh, and Dale “Sandman” DeVinney made up the all freshman foil squad, and they gave their all against the fierce MACFA competition. Patrick and Jawand used their Epee skills to land decisive counterattacks and fleches in order to win valuable bouts, while Dale used every trick in his bag to land any touch he could. The real opponent, however, was not the collegiate fencers that Men’s Foil faced. Instead the real enemy was their own gear, as blades snapped, white lighted, and just gave up throughout the tournament. By the end, four of their five foils were broken and the boys were bouting on a single foil and a prayer. Regardless, Men’s Foil fought through the adversity and are looking forward to bigger and better things!

Men’s Sabre

William and Mary Saber did not mess around at Stevens Institute of Technology. Justin “Gizmo” Feira and Ni “Vulcan” Hao took their talents to Hoboken, New Jersey and fearlessly fought fellow club but mostly other varsity fencing programs. Leo “Viking” Wallace was slated to come as the third member of the sabre B team but unfortunately contracted a near fatal illness just days before the tournament. Our two remaining soldiers fought valiantly and managed to come away with a 5-4 victory against Hunter and two other narrow 4-5 defeats against Army and Yeshiva. The B team gained invaluable experience and is ready to come back better than ever next year.

Men’s Epee

Epee squad’s impressive depth was on full display at BvC. With the regular starters competing in Atlanta, the “B” team of Henry “Falcon” Hermes ‘25, Eric “Helios” Montesi ‘26, and Luke “Mojave” Miller ‘27, posted a 5-2 record against NCAA varsity teams, highlighted by an impressive 6-3 win over Stevens and a 9-0 sweep of Hunter. No hand was safe from Falcon’s precise flicks, and his long attacks kept his opponents on their toes when they grew wary of his counters. His cutting journalism during timeouts provided important information on the boys’s lunch orders. Helios used dominating parries and lightning fast redoublements to overwhelm his opponents, shutting down attacks and giving varsity opponents crazy work while flexing the coldest sock game in MACFA. It was Miller Time for Mojave at his first collegiate competition, as the freshman controlled his opponents with impeccable timing and distance. He was the only fencer to take wins against every school, promising greatness in the future. With a strong result at BvC, the Tribe’s epee dynasty shows no signs of slowing down.

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SIFA

SIFA 2024

2.17.24 – 2.18.24

Women’s Epee

On February 17, William & Mary women’s epee defended their title as 2022 and 2023 SIFA champions. William & Mary women’s epee started Saturday out strong. In their individual event, Rebekah ‘Opal’ Gresham ’25 Anna ‘Lotus’ Saal ’27 both came out of pools with 5 victories each while Sarah ‘Tarot’ Gresham ’25 swept her pool with 6 victories. These three strong records allowed all three wepeeists to advance into the direct elimination round of only eight fencers. In the round of 8, tragic William on Mary violence occurred when Opal defeated Lotus to advance to the semi-finals and face Tarot. Tarot went on to the finals where she gained a decisive victory and the gold medal. Wepee’s strong performance in the individual event awarded them first seed in the team event, advancing them directly into the semifinals. From there, they defeated the University of Florida reaching the necessary 5 victories to advance with only 1 loss. Then, Opal, Tarot, and Lotus fought back from an initial 2 losses against the University of Georgia to win 5-3 in the finals. As if that weren’t impressive enough, this isn’t the first SIFA victory for W&M women’s epee. Opal and Tarot have led the team to victory for the third year in a row. Wepee is returning to Williamsburg victorious, with a bronze and gold medal in the individual event and 3 gold medals for their team performance.

Women’s Foil

On February 18, the Women’s Foil team won first place at the SIFA championships. Sarah Terpenning ‘27 and Kate Ingle ‘27 tied for 12th place, while Lucy Kasper ‘24 took gold in an intense bout against an Emory fencer. Following individual tournaments, the three girls pooled their skills together in the team tournaments. They managed to keep their cool as they fought through tough competitors, illegal calls, and unfair referees, ultimately leading to a victorious win for gold. This resulted in an overall SIFA win for the William & Mary Women’s Foil team, making it the first wins for freshmen Sarah and Kate, as well as senior Lucy Kasper’s final medal at SIFA champs.

Women’s Sabre

Women’s Sabre was victorious as they flew down the strips at SIFA! Karino Gibson ‘24, Angela ‘Luna’ Liu ‘25, and Debbie ‘Prism’ Ho ‘26, primarily foilists, tried their hand at sabre for the first time in a collegiate tournament. They each claimed their first sabre varsity wins.  The three fencers developed their understanding and sabre senses throughout the tournament and ultimately came in fifth place overall! 

Men’s Epee

Men’s Épée, comprised of Jake Schapiro ’24, Nolan Coughlin ’25, Armin Bagha ’24, took home gold at SIFA this year! Individually, Jake won fifth place, Armin came in second, and Nolan got first, with Nolan and Armin fencing off in an epic finals match. Deploying his parry 4-riposte against fleches, Jake won bouts against Emory and Kennesaw State. Nolan used his lightning reflexes to hit his opponents before they even had time to react. Coming through at the end, Armin used his speed and long reach to win the tie-breaking match against Kennesaw to get the team first place. Men’s Épée is thrilled with their victory and eagerly looking forward to MACFA Champs. 

Men’s Foil

Men’s foil brought the heat to Atlanta and the gold back to Williamsburg. Nick ‘Osiris’ Reeder ‘24, Jack ‘Yeti’ Bratton ‘24, and Thomas ‘Vice’ Mahnken ‘24 came first in Men’s Foil contributing to the overall William & Mary SIFA win. Yeti’s decisive distance also delivered him the individual gold medal! Osiris’s methodical marches cleared the way to a 5th place finish in individuals. Vice’s powerful parries clutched the final win against Emory to bring William & Mary gold. Men’s foil is looking forward to a rest week followed by MACFA champs!

Men’s Sabre

Men’s Sabre started off the season with an impressive performance in Atlanta earning each squad member their first medal at a collegiate tournament! Consisting of Connor “Lancelot” Cassidy ‘25, Evan “Duke” Jackson ‘25, and Ryan “Chronos” Rauscher ‘27, William and Mary’s Sabre squad fought tooth and nail against their fellow southern schools for a second place finish in the Southern Intercollegiate Fencing Association. Earlier in the day, Lance’s signature lockouts scored point after point for the team securing the second seed for the team event. In individuals, Duke’s tactical decision making and expert box actions earned him an 8th place finish, and Chronos’ lightning fast reflexes, Olympian-level blade work, and superhuman agility triumphantly carried him to the podium, bringing home bronze. Combined, the three showed off men’s Sabre as a powerful presence on the strip and a definite force to be reckoned with!

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MACFA

MACFA AvC 2024

2.11.24

Men’s Foil

Foil started the competitive season strong with a decisive performance at MACFA A versus C. Nick ‘Osiris’ Reeder ‘24, Jack ‘Yeti’ Bratton ‘24, and Thomas ‘Vice’ Mahnken ‘24 brought home 5 school wins, dropping rounds only to Johns Hopkins and Cornell. Yeti kept his attacks clean and precise, bringing home wins against every school and sweeping every school in the back half of the day. Osiris marched his opponents down and kept them back with long attacks, bringing home a win against all schools but Hopkins. Vice’s parries held his opponents at bay, picking up multiple wins during the day.

Men’s Sabre

Men’s Saber starts the season with a solid performance beating 4 out of the 7 varsity teams. The team consisting of  Connor “Lancelot” Cassidy ‘25, Evan “Duke” Jackson ‘25, Ryan “Chronos” Rauscher ‘27, and  Justin “Gizmo” Feira ‘27 cemented itself as a serious contender amongst the other schools. All these fencers brought forth their own unique styles and talents on the strip which allowed them to decisively win many bouts to the surprise of  their opponents. Not only has this competition showcased the ability of Men’s Saber this year, but ignites a newfound fervor towards their performance in future collegiate events.

Men’s Epee

Men’s Épée, comprised of Jake Schapiro ’24, Nolan Coughlin ’25, Armin Bagha ’24, and Eric Montesi ‘26 gave it their all at MACFA AvC, fighting hard for every touch. Jake made good use of timing to defeat a Johns Hopkins fencer. With his characteristic long reach, Armin dominated his opponents, winning bouts against every school. Nolan deployed his trademark speed, hitting fencers before they could even react. Eric, a lefty, confused his adversaries and triumphed in all of his bouts. Men’s épée ended the day tired but excited for the next tournament.

Categories
MACFA

MACFA Championships 2023 Recap

Foil

Men’s foil closed out the post season with a very strong performance at MACFA Champs. A strip Nick “Osiris” Reeder ‘24, B strip Thomas “Vice” Mahnken ‘24, and C strip Frank “The Judge, Jury, and Executioner” Prather ‘25 brought their game to New Jersey, taking wins off almost every school. Judge stepped up to the plate and continued his very effective defensive game, bringing home multiple varsity wins. Vice brought clean attacks and swift parries and secured 3 varsity wins. Osiris started off strong, using fast footwork and dynamic attack to snag 4 varsity wins but had to withdraw in the 7th round due to injury.

Nick Reeder zoomin’

Epee

Men’s Épée, comprised of Jake “Merlin” Schapiro ’24, Nolan “Titan” Coughlin ’25, and Armin “D.O.W. Jones” Bagha ’24, performed very well at MACFA Champs, coming in 5th place overall out of 15 schools. The squad each won their bouts against Haverford, a varsity school. Making use of his long legs, Armin lunged at his opponents throughout the day, winning many bouts. With his speedy actions, Nolan annihilated his opponents. Unafraid to take his time, Jake demonstrated great patience, going for the touch when the moment was just right. Men’s Épée is excited for the next tournament. 

Sabre

Mens sabre came to MACFA champs with their eyes on the prize. Christopher “Claymore” Zane ‘25 commanded powerful parries, riposting before his opponents knew what hit them. He won 7 bouts against Yeshiva, Rowan, Lafayette, Hunter, Maryland, Cornell, and the United States Naval Academy. Evan “Duke” Jackson ‘25 utilized skillful, lightning fast quick attacks, winning 4, against Yeshiva, Rowan, Hunter, and Cornell. Leading the squad, their dashing captain Michael “Slate McCoy: Noir Detective” Zessin ‘23 employed sneaky counter attacks to beat Cornell and Yeshiva, and going 4-5 against Hunter and Drew. Overall, mens sabre won 10th place, beating 5 teams, including 3 varsity teams. Mens sabre is happy with their success, and is looking forward to more victories in the future!

Categories
MACFA

MACFA BvC 2023 Recap

Foil

Men’s foil closed out the season strong with Nick ‘Osiris’ Reeder ‘24, Thomas ‘Vice’ Mahnken ‘24, and Frank ‘The Judge, Jury, and Executioner’ Prather ‘25 winning two rounds against varsity schools. Judge, through solid defense and patient repostes secured not only his first, but also his second varsity win against Yeshiva University and Hunter College. Vice, through varied attacks and systematic defense also secured multiple varsity wins against Yeshiva, Hunter, Army, and Stevens. Osiris employed consistent distance and fast footwork to secure wins against Yeshiva, Hunter, Army, and Stevens as well as bringing an NJIT fencer to 4-5. In total, the only school Men’s Foil did not score a victory against was NJIT, a very strong season finisher as the squad prepares for Championships in two weeks.

Epee

W&M men’s epee clocked in and returned to John’s Hopkins again. The squad, composed of Henry “Falcon” Hermes, Eric “Helios” Montesi, Nolan “Titan” Coughlin, and Armin “DOW Jones” Bagha, demonstrated another electric performance, going 3-2, beating Yeshiva, Hunter, and the United States Military Academy. Henry’s reach and magnetic aim towards his opponents hand helped propel him past the competition. In his first competition, Eric demonstrated agility and speed that most were unable to keep up with. Nolan and Armin return with their consistently electric performances, utilizing speed, counters, and infights through incredibly dynamic plays. The team demonstrated their hard hat mentality and grit, performing well and having a blast while doing so, solidifying their position amongst professionally coached varsity programs. Their night concluded with a much warranted reward to the Fredericksburg Applebee’s to enjoy two entrees at $25. The squad had a blast, and looks forward to competing and cementing their place in the completion at MACFA champs.

Categories
MACFA

MACFA AvC 2023 Recap

The team huddles for a cheer before the tournament

Men’s Foil

Men’s foil gave yet another strong performance at MACFA AvC, once again proving all of the haters wrong. Nick ‘Osiris’ Reeder ‘24, Thomas ‘Vice’ Mahnken ‘24, Zeerick ‘Coyote’ Malik ‘23, and Frank ‘The Judge, Jury, and Executioner’ Prather ‘25 showed up with one thing collectively on their minds: victory. Osiris taught the opposition a thing or two about counterattacks, scoring win after win with quick movements and perfect positioning. Vice’s blade was a blur during his bouts, with his impressive blade control causing him to slip through his opponents’ defenses with ease. Coyote’s strong fundamentals and unpredictability earned him yet another varsity win. Judge didn’t win a single bout, but I’ll be damned if he wasn’t looking good while losing. Such a promising performance has the men’s foil team rearing and ready to go for the remainder of their season.

Women’s Foil

Right to left: Deborah Ho, Caroline Yu, Gwyneth Smith, Lucia Kasper

Lucia “Gecko” Kasper ’24, Karino “Jasmine” Gibson ’24, and Deborah “Prism” Ho ’26 utilized the power of teamwork to fiercely fence their foes. Jasmine’s use of speed and agility gave her challengers a fright as she scored on varsity fencers. Prism used her master blade work to bamboozle her varsity opponents. Gecko employed expert footwork and scared the varsity fencers with her lizard-like agility. All three women’s foils scored wins against varsity fencers.

Men’s Sabre

Making an explosive start of the semester, mens sabre did very well at MACFA AvC. Evan “Duke” Jackson ‘25 and Christopher “Claymore” Zane ‘25 both won their first bouts against varsity schools! Their devilishly handsome captain Michael “Slate McCoy: Noir Detective” Zessin ‘25 led the squad to victory over Rowan, Yeshiva, and Cornell, while going 4-5 with Lafayette. After getting a taste of blood, mens sabre is hungry for more!

Women’s Sabre

Katie “Sparrow” Richardson and Caroline “Sigil” Yu slid into this semester with renewed fierceness. Sigil performed smashingly in her first collegiate tournament, securing some beautifully timed touches for W&M. Sparrow slashed through a victory against Rutgers, and used her epee skills to her advantage against Navy that would make her epee teammates proud. Sigil and Sparrow enjoyed this tournament and are looking forward to more tournaments in the future!

Men’s Epee

W&M men’s epee showed up to John’s Hopkins with an absolutely amazing performance. The squad, composed of Jake Schapiro, Nolan Coughlin, and squad captain Armin Bagha went to work, improving on their performance from last year, and going 4-1, beating Rutgers, Lafayette, Rowan, and culminating in an electric win against Drew University. Jake’s counters and flèches shut opponents down. Nolan’s foot touches and unstoppable remises left opponents without a chance to counter. Armin’s flicks and infights helped seal the deal, helping to propel William and Mary as serious contenders alongside professionally coached varsity programs. Their nights ultimately concluded without a trip to a local Applebee’s unfortunately. Maybe that’ll change next time. The squad had an absolute blast, and look forward to having as much fun and repeating an incredible performance at their next competition.

Women’s Epee

The first tournament of the Spring 2023 semester got off to a great start for William & Mary’s women’s epee squad. Consisting of Gwyneth “Penne” Smith ‘23, Sarah “Tarot” Gresham ‘25, and Rebekah “Opal” Gresham ‘25, they arrived at Johns Hopkins University ready to go. Gwyneth fenced in her last MACFA of her college career and was very satisfied with the results, as well as thankful for the opportunity to fence so many amazing schools over the past four years! Meanwhile, Sarah and Rebekah served up double trouble on the strip and managed to secure varsity wins while also putting out a strong showing overall. Overall, it was a good start to the semester, and with their showing, women’s epee left their opponents seeing double.

Women!!!!!!
Categories
MACFA

MACFA C Round Robin 2022 Recap

Women’s foil after a good tournament

Women’s Foil

Women’s foil absolutely crushed it in our first Collegiate tournament of the year! As a team they defeated 4 out of 5 varsity teams they fenced against. Debbie “Prism” Ho ’26 killed it with ferocity in her eyes in her first ever collegiate tournament with 8 varsity wins, and Angela “Luna” Liu ’25 displayed incredible talent and poise and she seamlessly obtained 6 varsity wins. Lucia “Gecko” Kasper ’24 utilized her lizard like sticky feet in defeating 12 varsity opponents. Overall women’s foil kicked some varsity butt.

Foil squad

Men’s Foil

Men’s foil started the year strong for the Macfa C Round-Robin. Nick ‘Osiris’ Reeder ‘24, Frank ‘The Judge, Jury, and Executioner’ Prather ‘25, and Zeerick ‘Coyote’ Malik ‘23 brought a strong performance to the first collegiate tournament of the year. Both Judge and Coyote had exceptional performances at their first ever collegiate competitions. Judge’s steadfast defense and long reach locked out many opponents. Using his consistent parries and solid defense to extend the bout, he brought multiple varsity A Strips to 4-4 situations. Coyote demonstrated his offensive skill while pushing his opponents and striking while they were off balance. Using this quick attack and timing, he secured his first varsity win against Navy and again against Swarthmore. Osiris took charge as the A strip, setting distance traps and lighting parry reposts to take down his opponents. With his high intensity and transition focused fencing, he swept both Swarthmore and Navy, as well as securing a win against UMD. As the semester comes to a close, men’s foil have the wind at their backs and are excited to take on the next set of collegiate tournaments.

Women’s Epee with Pulak Raj, an alumni

Women’s Epee

The women’s epee squad at MACFA C Round Robin 2022 was composed of Gwyneth “Penne” Smith ‘23 and Rebekah “Opal” Gresham ‘25. While initially meant to be a three person squad, the third member had to drop out at the last minute. Despite missing a person, Gwyneth and Rebekah persevered and even managed to beat two schools (Haverford and Navy) outright, even while forfeiting three bouts. Rebekah only dropped a single bout the whole day, and otherwise fenced her way through the other schools, amassing varsity wins. Gwyneth was proud of her performance, especially her victory over a Johns Hopkins fencer. They were assisted by Pulak “Basque” Raj ‘20, an alumni who came to visit and provided invaluable wisdom to the epee squad. Overall, it was a successful tournament for the two and they are looking forward to competing in more next semester!

Men’s Epee with Pulak Raj

Men’s Epee

At the first tournament of the season, Jake “Merlin” Schapiro ’24,  Henry “Falcon” Hermes ’25, Nathaniel “Pluto” Ingle ‘25, and Winston “Archer” Palmer ‘23 of Men’s Épée performed great. The squad defeated Haverford, a varisty team, and Swarthmore. With his swift disengages and ability to adjust, Merlin came back from a 4-0 deficit to win a bout against a University of Maryland fencer. Falcon wowed all with a beautiful prime against Haverford. At his first ever collegiate tournament, Pluto took advantage of his long legs and made explosive lunges. Aggressive as always, Archer overwhelmed his opponents. This squad has a fantastic future of tournaments ahead.

Sabre Squad

Women’s Sabre

Women’s Sabre, composed of Abigail “Valkyrie” Salzberg ’24 and Kelley “Ophelia” Wang ’23, put up a good fight at D’Arnstein Invintaional. Valkyrie, at her first collegiate tournament of the semester, and Ophelia, at their first collegiate tournament ever, both scored a varsity win against Haverford. Valkyrie also scored a win against Bryn Mawr. As a team, women’s saber overall tied with Swathmore, an amazingly rare result. Great performance and great learning experience, this event has encouraged them to keep on fencing.

Sabre squad outside the tournament venue

Men’s Sabre

Men’s Sabre, composed of Connor “Lancelot” Cassidy ’25, Evan “Duke” Jackson ’25, and Devon “Quasar” Keesee ’26, performed very well at the tournament. Lancelot swept all three Haverford fencers, and went on to beat one Navy and Swarthmore fencer each. He also managed to get an impressive flunge on the A-strip for Swarthmore. Duke and Quasar did exceptionally well at their first collegiate tournament, both getting their first varsity wins. Duke beat a fencer from Swarthmore through his use of quick box actions and clean footwork, along with coming extremely close to winning many other bouts. Quasar won two bouts against Swarthmore, making an impressive use of pulls to surprise opponents and get many touches.