Categories
Recaps

COVID-19 Update and Mid-season Recap

This has certainly been one of the most unusual semesters experienced by the William & Mary fencing team in many years. Normally, this post would be a recap of one of the many tournaments taking place in the fall. However, given that all tournaments are suspended until further notice, it will instead provide an update on how the team has been functioning amidst the pandemic. While this year’s schedule is obviously very different from those past, the William & Mary fencing team has continued to operate to the best of its abilities. The team has gained a number of new recruits with a wide range of experience, and practices are still happening this semester, albeit with new COVID-19 restrictions in place.

orpheus

Practices are still held in Kaplan as usual, now taking place every Friday (from 4-5:30pm) and Saturday (2-3:30pm). As the fencing room can only support eight people social distancing at one time, they have been divided into 45-minute sessions in order to allow more members the opportunity to practice. This means that members must sign-up in advance every week, and there are only a limited amount of slots available. As well as that, masks must be worn the duration of practice, and the room must undergo frequent sanitation.

targetpractice

However, this has yet to deter the team, as new and old members alike continue to show up ready to learn at every practice. In line with new COVID-19 guidelines, bouts are no longer allowed, so practice has adjusted accordingly. The team now focuses more on conditioning and footwork, and getting in shape for the (hopefully) upcoming tournaments next semester. As well as that, the team’s recently-acquired targets have helped fencers with their bladework and point control. Remember, never sacrifice precision and accuracy for speed!

primothy

Though this semester was likely not what anyone had anticipated, the team has done its best to adjust, and the bonds between teammates and the dedication to the sport remain strong. Hopefully the fencing team will return strong next semester with regular practices and tournaments resumed; for now, please enjoy this unconventional recap during unprecedented times!

jn

For more information about William & Mary fencing team and how we’re operating this semester, contact us at fencingwm@gmail.com or check us out on Facebook!

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MACFA

MACFA Championships 2020 Recap

Last weekend, the William & Mary men’s fencing team traveled to Drew University for MACFA Championships.  As a 3-weapon team, W&M finished 10th.  At the end of the event, the coaches from the other schools presented William & Mary with the team sportsmanship award.  Ironically, last year’s recipients failed to bring it to the tournament.  Nonetheless, our team was honored to receive the award.  Here are the results for each individual squad.

Saber:

After their outing at MACFA BvC, Michael Zessin ’23, Matthew Dreher ’20, and Nickolas Boylan ’22 returned to New Jersey to take on opponents at MACFA Championships.  Michael fenced C strip and caught many opponents off-guard with his decisive bladework.  He improved throughout the day and had great success with his aggressive searches.  As B strip, Matthew used his long reach and quick footwork to catch his opponents.  After falling behind 0-4 against Army, Matthew launched 5 aggressive attacks, each slightly longer than the last, to complete his comeback victory.  Matthew fenced at every MACFA event this year and managed to make connections with fencers from many other schools.  A strip Nicko took 9th place among A strip fencers and managed to go toe to toe with numerous varsity opponents.  Steven Pressendo ’20 was unable to fence but provided vital strip coaching to our fencers pointing out weakness in opponents and helping our fencers to correct theirs.  Saber squad would also like to thank our alumni for their support and advice, which mean a lot to all members of the squad.  Men’s saber took 10th overall and is excited for the Virginia Cup!

Épée:

Ben Witman ’20, Winston Palmer ’23, and Greg Quigg ’21 competed as épée squad for this tournament.  Ben started out the day off right, earning his first varsity win as an epeeist in priority against Yeshiva.  Ben used his parries to clear his opponents’ blades and score impressive touches against many varsity fencers.  Winston used his well-timed counterattacks and aggressive fencing style to his advantage at his first ever MACFA Championship, racking up another varsity win against Hunter College.  Greg used his explosive advance lunge to his advantage to get back-to-back wins against both Navy and Army’s A strips.  Overall, men’s épée had a solid performance at MACFA Championships, and are looking forward to fencing in the Virginia Cup!

Foil:

Men’s foil put on a great performance at MACFA Championships, finishing 8th out of 15 total schools, placing them above several varsity schools.  Matthew Cusick ’20, Stuart Thomas ’21, and Faisal Al-Alami ’20 all fenced well and even going undefeated against schools like Army and Yeshiva.  They earned solid individual wins against varsity opponents, a sign of their continued improvement.  Overall, Men’s foil is looking strong heading into their next competition.

 

Victories over Varsity Fencers:

MS: Matthew Dreher, Nicko Boylan

MF: Matt Cusick, Faisal Al-Alami, Stuart Thomas

ME: Ben Witman, Winston Palmer

 

This was our final event of the year where our team will compete against varsity opponents.  Throughout the season, 23 different W&M fencers earned victories over varsity fencers, including 7 fencers who earned their first.  For the full list of W&M victories over varsity fencers since 2012, click here.

 

Our team will next compete on March 21 and 22, when we host the Virginia Cup and look to defend our state title.  We will hold the tournament in Adair gym, with men fencing on Saturday and women fencing on Sunday.  For more details, see our Facebook event or email fencingwm@gmail.com

Categories
MACFA

MACFA BvC 2020 Recap

Our men’s team traveled to NJIT for MACFA BvC.  Our final event of the MACFA regular season pitted our team against four varsity schools and the U.S. Military Academy.

Saber

Men’s saber left MACFA BvC with numerous varsity wins and a lot of valuable experience.  Matthew Dreher ’20, Michael Zessin ’23, and Nickolas Boylan ’22 took on NJIT, Stevens, Army, Yeshiva, and Hunter.  Matthew branched out from his usual weapon of foil and unleashed his unconventional but effective techniques to win bouts against Hunter, Yeshiva, Stevens, and Army.  In addition to scoring four varsity wins, Matthew kept the team’s spirits high with his positive attitude.  Michael immensely improved his fencing over the course of the year, and earned his first varsity win against Yeshiva through the use of his skillful pulls and quick blade work.  Nickolas won seven bouts, five of which came over varsity opponents.  Men’s saber is happy to have once again shown that in fencing, funding isn’t everything, and are excited for their next competition.

Foil:

Zach Roberts ’22 and Zahl Azizi ’22 represented men’s foil for this tournament.  Despite an injury Zahl sustained early on, he took on a coaching role, helping to analyze the patterns of opponents and giving valuable bouting advice to Zach.  Through Orpheus’s swift feint-disengages, a strong defense, and the calculated coaching of Kraken, he pulled off multiple victories against varsity fencers.  Zach led men’s foil to a 3-2 victory over Hunter College, sealing the school-wide victory for W&M.  Despite the lack of a full squad going into this tournament, men’s foil is ready to take on MACFA Champs at full strength.

Épée:

Roger White ’23, Winston Palmer ’23, Ben Witman ’20, and Pulak Raj ’20 had a great day representing Men’s épée at NJIT.  Winston fenced using his aggressive and overwhelming style to march his opponents down the strip.  Roger, fencing his first varsity opponents ever, won multiple varsity bouts by catching his opponents out with his explosive fleche.  Ben stepped in after Pulak fenced a few bouts against NJIT.  His strong parry 2s and stophits scored him many points and he improved constantly throughout the day.  After fencing all of their preliminary MACFA bouts, men’s épée is looking forward to making a statement at MACFA Champs.

 

After a weekend at home for the Conomikes-Gutenberg Memorial Open, our men’s team will head to Drew University on March 1 for the MACFA Championship!

 

Victories over Varsity Fencers (a full list of victories since 2012 can be found here)

MS: Matthew Dreher, Nicko Boylan, Michael Zessin (first)

MF: Zach Roberts (first)

ME: Roger White (first)

Categories
MACFA

MACFA AvC 2020 Recap

Last weekend, our team kicked off the spring semester with a trip to Johns Hopkins for MACFA AvC.  We faced a full day of competition, with our fencers competing against nine different schools.  Here is how each squad did.

Épée:

William & Mary Men’s Épée took MACFA by storm with a never-before-assembled roster of Pulak Raj ’20, Greg Quigg ’21, and Simon Yue ’22.  Greg displayed his increased arsenal of attacks and scored points on both the offensive and defensive ends of the strip.  However, in tight bouts, Greg’s stop hits and distance shined as he picked up many touches through manipulating his distance and his opponent’s perceived distance with him.  Simon fenced his first tournament in more than a year and surprised all his opponents with his controlled footwork and timing.  If an opponent dared to aggressively march him down, Simon would punish them immediately by attacking into their advance.  Pulak came into MACFA with low expectations due to his injured ankle, but he was able to take down his opponents with his crushing bladework and disengages.  He was unfortunately forced to medically withdraw towards the end of the day, but his teammates stepped up and nabbed some key wins. Men’s Épée scored multiple victories against every school, including the varsity schools, and is ready to keep up the momentum going into MACFA BvC

This tournament our Women’s Épée squad consisted of two fencers, Riley Aiken ’20 and Gwyneth Smith ’23.  Despite this being her first épée tournament, Riley performed very well, winning a bout against a varsity opponent and gaining points in all of her others through a mix of épée and saber technique.  This was only Gwyneth’s second épée tournament, but she managed to win three bouts, including her final one against a member of Drew’s varsity team.  Even though it was an unconventional squad, the two formed a good team and found it to be a successful tournament for Women’s Épée!

Foil:

Men’s Foil, consisting of Matt Cusick ’20, Stuart Thomas ’21, and Faisal Al-Alami ’20, had an incredible performance at MACFA AvC.  Overall, Men’s Foil finished 6-1, triumphing over Cornell, Rowan, TCNJ, Rutgers, Lafayette, and Maryland.  Impressively, all three fencers won against members of varsity teams.  This result marks a significant improvement since the MACFA C round robin of last semester.  Men’s Foil will head into MACFA Champs with renewed confidence.

Women’s Foil had a great weekend at Johns Hopkins!  Senior Elizabeth Sutterlin ’20 was joined at her final MACFA meet by juniors Jennifer Chen ’21 and Julianne Cook ’21. The squad faced some of its most difficult schools in the morning but rallied their spirits and went undefeated in the afternoon.

Elizabeth started the day with a morning bagel over one of Lafayette’s fencers, and learned from mistakes in her early bouts to improve her game in the afternoon.  She was happiest with her victory over Rutgers’ A-strip.  She relied on her strong defense and effective bladework to win against a difficult opponent.  Julianne picked up some crucial wins against varsity opponents. Her parry-ripostes caught her opponents off guard and she had a great bout against a Rutgers fencer.  Jennifer was the star of the day, expertly controlling the pace of each of her bouts while her opponents struggled to keep up.  She made it clear she was a threat to the competition as she racked up wins over both Navy and Drew’s A-strips. (Having spectator support certainly may have helped!)

The ladies finished the day with a spectacular win over Drew.  Each of the fencers pulled off some key victories, bringing up the bout score until the match came down to the ninth bout.  The pressure didn’t bother Jennifer, who handily ended the day with a 5-0 bout victory.  W&M Women’s Foil was thrilled to earn a match victory over a varsity program and show them what we were capable of.

Special thanks to Seth Daily ’19 for strip coaching and providing advice throughout the day!

Saber:

Michael Zessin ’23 and Matthew Dreher comprised the men’s saber team.  Michael had a respectable showing in his first MACFA tournament.  Over the course of the day with coaching from alumnus Robert Catlett ’18, MBA ’19, Michael’s fencing improved drastically with him scoring many touches with well-timed counterattacks and decisive actions in the box.  Matthew had finished the day with 7 wins, one being against a varsity fencer from Lafayette.  Though the competition was tough, men’s saber is eager for their next chance to compete.

Women’s Saber was excited to fence so many schools in our first tournament of the semester!  Madeline Myers ’20 used her distance and mental game to go from 1-4 to 5-4 in a bout against Navy.  She also won all three of her bouts against Haverford, a varsity school. Mary McCants ’21 used her off-the-line speed and tricky disengages to fool many opponents, including all three women from Navy.  Clara Magner ’23 continued to show improvement, building on her strong parry ripostes and even getting quick attacks as the day went on.  While Women’s Saber may be done with MACFA for the year, we’re still looking forward to the other tournaments the semester will bring!

 

Thanks to W&M Fencing alumni Robert Catlett, Seth Daily, and Will Bushman for coming to support our team!  Our team will be back in action on Sunday February 16, when our men’s squads head to NJIT for MACFA BvC.

 

Victories over Varsity Fencers (a full list of victories since 2012 can be found here)

  • MS: Matthew Dreher ’20
  • MF: Matt Cusick ’20, Faisal Al-Alami ’20, Stuart Thomas ’21
  • ME: Pulak Raj ’20, Greg Quigg ’21, Simon Yue ’22
  • WS: Madeline Myers ’20, Mary McCants ’21
  • WF: Elizabeth Sutterlin ’20, Jennifer Chen ’21, Julianne Cook ’21
  • WE: Riley Aiken ’20, Gwyneth Smith ’23
Categories
MACFA

MACFA C Round-Robin Recap

Our team traveled to Haverford College for the first MACFA tournament of the season!  At MACFA C Round Robin, our team faced varsity opponents from Johns Hopkins and Haverford in addition to Navy’s team.

Foil:

Elizabeth Sutterlin ’20 and Julianne Cook ’21 formed a composite team with one girl from Johns Hopkins University to round out the Women’s Foil squad. No one would have guessed that Julianne was returning to competition after a hand injury earlier this semester—she earned a varsity victory against a Haverford fencer, and won another tough bout over one of Navy’s fencers. Elizabeth came into the tournament hungry to see the results of her fencing’s growth since last year, and her performance did not disappoint! Elizabeth swept the Haverford squad and only dropped one bout all day. She is already looking forward to facing Hopkins’ full squad and a rematch with Navy’s A-strip at the next MACFA event in the spring.

Men’s Foil, consisting of Matt Cusick ’20, Stuart Thomas ’21, and Faisal Al-Alami ’20 fenced well at MACFA C Round Robin, coming close to beating both Navy and Haverford.  With overall scores of 4-5 against both Navy and Haverford, the tournament was full of fierce bouts where even a single victory could determine the match.  From an individual perspective, every fencer won bouts and Matt came close to winning two bouts against Johns Hopkins, only losing both 4-5. Stuart won a close bout 5-4 against one of Navy’s fencers.  Faisal’s best result came in a 5-1 victory over one of Haverford’s fencers.  The squad’s strong showings give Men’s Foil great confidence moving into next semester’s qualifiers.

Épée:

Women’s Epee brought a two-person squad comprised of Morgan Blackwelder ’21 and saber fencer Madeline Meyers ’20.  Our fencers formed a composite squad with a fencer from Johns Hopkins and set out against a tough roster of opponents.  Morgan used her patient style of fencing to bait and pick off opponents with her counterattacks.  Madeline called upon her saber experience to come out aggressively.  Her speed threw off her opponents and scored many a touch.  Overall, they fenced well and look forward to their next chance to compete.

On a breezy November weekend, Gregory Quigg ’21, Benjamin Witman ’20, and Winston Palmer ventured North to Haverford, PA for the MACFA C Round-Robin Event, ready for action. Greg used his long reach and even longer experience to stay calm, cool, and collected against strong varsity squads, netting several victories again varsity and club teams alike. Ben, fueled by love for the sport, used his patience and mental fortitude to outlast opponents and make them beg for every point. Winston laughed at opposing fencer’s preps and attacked without hesitation, netting himself a clean, first varsity victory over Haverford. Armed with knowledge and more experience, men’s epee returned to William & Mary ready to prepare for the Spring.

Saber:

Women’s Saber enjoyed their first MACFA tournament of the year, fencing both Haverford and Navy.  Clara Magner ’23 showed great improvement through her effective parry ripostes.  She earned her first ever tournament win and her first win over a varsity opponent this weekend!  Mary McCants ’21 used quick extensions to catch her opponents off guard.  Riley Aiken ’20 also fenced well, relying on strong parry ripostes and marching her opponents down with powerful long attacks.  The squad looks forward to attending more MACFAs in the spring, and continuing to improve while having fun.

After a series of illnesses and injuries sidelined most of the men’s saber squad, foilists Zahl Azizi ‘22 and Matt Dreher ‘20 joined Nicko Boylan ‘22 for the first MACFA of the year.  Despite having little saber experience prior to the event, both foil fencers secured wins over varsity opponents and carried great attitudes throughout the day.  Matt opened the day against a strong opponent who had previously earned bronze in MACFA Championships. Despite losing the bout 4-5, Matt’s crafty parry ripostes showed the other schools that he would be no easy opponent.  In his next bout, Matt found himself down 1-3.  Undeterred, he came storming back with a sequence of long marching attacks that earned him his first win over a varsity saber fencer.  Zahl’s bouts against Haverford showcased his aggression.  His attacks into preparation intimidated his opponents, which set Zahl up to patiently push his opponents and earn his first varsity win!  Against Johns Hopkins, Zahl surprised his opponents with speedy parry ripostes.  After triumphing over varsity opponents from both Haverford and Johns Hopkins, Zahl cemented his status as a W&M saber fencer when he too had to withdraw from the tournament due to injury.  Nicko’s best fencing came when he took on Navy.  Inside the box, Nicko’s varied setups allowed him to sneak attacks into preparations from unsuspecting opponents.  On defense, Nicko showed great control over the touches.  After repeatedly scoring with his trademark counterattacks, Nicko switched to fake counterattacks, sealing the bouts with his strong parries.

 

Victories over varsity fencers

  • MS: Zahl Azizi (first), Matt Dreher
  • MF: Matt Cusick, Stuart Thomas, Faisal Alami
  • ME: Winston Palmer (first), Greg Quigg
  • WS: Clara Magner (first), Riley Aiken, Mary McCants
  • WE: Morgan Blackwelder
  • WF: Elizabeth Sutterlin, Julianne Cook
Categories
SIFA

SIFA North Recap

We kicked off our tournament season with a trip to George Washington University for SIFA North.  We brought squads filled with new faces excited to get their first taste of collegiate competition!

 

Foil:

Last week, our returning women’s foilists Jennifer “Muse” Chen ’21 and Elizabeth “Bolt” Sutterlin ’20 arrived at SIFA North, eager to begin a new year of competition. They were joined for the day by another foilist from Georgetown to round out the squad. Although they met the day of the competition, the three girls gelled immediately and started the day with victories over UVA and GWU, coming in first place out of pools. In the DE round, Bolt and Muse each made adjustments from the morning, and widened their victory over UVA from 5-4 to 5-2. After some close bouts in a tense final match against GWU, women’s foil narrowly lost to take 2nd place in the competition. Both W&M fencers were determined to end the day on a high note and dominated the individual event. Bolt took home first place and Muse earned second.

 

Men’s foil had a strong showing at SIFA North, earning 2nd place overall. Matt “Riker” Dreher ’20, Zahl “Kraken” Azizi ’22, and Zach “Orpheus” Roberts ’22 all fenced well with coaching from Matt “Mamba” Cusick ’20. After going back and forth in pools against schools such as Georgetown and Virginia Tech, men’s foil moved into the direct elimination bracket as the third seed. They took down composite teams from JMU/GWU and VT/Georgetown before ultimately losing to Georgetown’s A squad in the finals. They plan to build on this promising result to surpass the 2nd place they achieved at SIFA Championships last year.

 

Saber:

Brandon “Chappa” Mullins ’20, Michael “Slate McCoy: Noir Detective” Zessin ’23, and Nicko “Gero” Boylan ’22, comprised the men’s saber team. At his first ever tournament, Slate fought through illness to score many touches with well-timed counterattacks and decisive actions in the box. Chappa’s speedy parry ripostes and quick footwork carried him to success throughout the day.  Gero finished the day with 14 wins and third place in the individual tournament.  Though the competition was tough, men’s saber is eager for their next chance to compete.

 

Women’s saber had a lot of fun and earned a second-place finish to open the competitive season! Clara “Jooniper” Magner ’23 had a great time at her first tournament. She constantly improved, growing more confident and aggressive throughout the day.  Jooniper also found great success by relying on her parry ripostes.  Mary “Prim” McCants ’21 had a great day, highlighted by coming in second in individuals!  She also had excellent parry ripostes and continued to use her sneaky disengages to great effect.  Rounding out the squad, Madeline “Mercury” Myers ’20 kept her actions clean, scoring touches with her trademark counterattacks. She also showed personal improvement with wins over opponents she struggled against at previous events. Women’s saber fenced well and are excited for future competitions.

 

Épée:

This weekend, the all-freshman women’s epee squad made their collegiate tournament debut. The group, comprised of Anna “Pepper” Hoskins ’23, Aoife “Tetra” Hufford ’23, and Gwyneth “Penne” Smith ’23, went up against a mix of both experienced and novice fencers and finished the tournament in third place. The women beat UVA, George Washington, and UNCG in the round of pools, and dominated UNCG again in DEs. Penne surprised her opponents with her speed and strength, quickly winning bout after bout. Tetra, utilizing parries and feints, drew out wrist shots to finish bouts, and Pepper, despite this being her first fencing tournament ever, quickly adapted to the tournament atmosphere and surpassed the ability of rival teams. The women established their ability and look forward to their next chance to showcase their potential.

 

Men’s epee sent a strong roster of Ben “Boxer” Witman ’20, Winston “Archer” Palmer ’23, and Roger “Schwartz” White ’23 into SIFA North, ready to fence their first ever epee tournaments.  Boxer, a former foilist was able to establish control over his opponents’ blade using his strong parry 2’s and well-timed fleches. Archer used his seemingly endless energy to constantly out-tempo and out-speed his opponents to pick up many key victories. Schwartz, with a strong grasp of the fundamentals, parried anyone that tried to straight attack him and also scored big wins for William & Mary. All three men’s epeeists had many close 4-4 bouts that could have gone either way and SIFA North was overall a great learning experience for the three new epeeists.

Categories
Recaps

Victory at Virginia Cup!

William & Mary kept up their dominance at the annual Virginia Cup, hosted here at the College this year. Due to a year of hard work, the Cup remains on our trophy case until next year. We did exceptionally in the women’s events, winning first place in women’s foil and saber and second place in épée. Our ladies dominated the podium in the individual events as well. The men won second place in every weapon. This consistency landed them in first place overall. In all six weapons, we finished off strong in first place. Read on for a detailed recap of the tournament:

Épée
VA Cup was a very competitive tournament for men’s epee and William and Mary men’s epee came to compete, sending a roster of Pulak Raj ’20, Huw Richards (graduate student), Benjamin Coleman ’19, and Greg Quigg ’21. Huw Richards, fencing his first VA Cup, proved himself as one of the strongest fencers in the room by using his distance and speed to catch his opponents by surprise. Pulak Raj and Benjamin Coleman both returned to VA cup to continue their dominance at VA Cup even with the new heavy competition at the tournament. The team’s last match was against UVA where William and Mary men’s epee won 6-3. Every victory against UVA was a clutch victory because William and Mary ending up edging past UVA by a single bout and secured 2nd place. All in all, men’s epee learned a lot from the tough competition and looks forward to competing at CFCs.
This weekend, women’s epee came out in full force at Virginia Cup with a team of experienced seniors— Kirsten Clamann ’19, Annette Kang ’19, and Nikki Petzer ’19. Their overall performance was stellar, only losing to one school, 4-5, throughout the day. Kirsten used her quick thinking and bladework expertise to do well both in team bouts as well individuals. Annette utilized her fierce aggression and speedy parries to throw opponents off and deliver some much needed victories. Coming in second in individuals, Nikki had a strong showing, carefully timing her attacks and improving upon point control. Women’s epee looks forward to continuing their victories throughout the spring tournament season.
 
Foil
Men’s foil put on an impressive performance at VA cup, taking home the silver medal in both team and individuals. Men’s foil brought four fencers to the tournament, all of which ended the day winning far more bouts than they lost. Foil captain, Matthew Cusick ’20, led the squad only dropping two bouts in the team pools, and finishing second overall in individuals. Stuart Thomas ’21 and Aaron Stone ’22 had similarly impressive runs, making it into the quarter and semi-finals in individuals. Faisal Al-Alami ’20 served as substitute for the team event, and although he fenced less team bouts than the other members, he managed to maintain a 100% rate of victory. Overall, Men’s foil had what might have been their strongest performance of the season, which indicates good things going into club nationals.
Women’s foil had a great day at Virginia Cup, and were able to show off just how much their fencing had grown after training hard all semester. Elizabeth Sutterlin ’20, Molly McCue ’21, and Julie Vu ’20 each brought their own A-game, but the squad was made even stronger as they supported one another and cheered each other on throughout the day. Overall, the squad earned first place after a nail-biting 5-4 victory over UVA.
Elizabeth only dropped one bout in the team portion of the event, and then pushed through individual DEs to place 2nd, losing in a long, tough match to Grayson Katzenbach (UVA) in the finals. Despite dealing with injuries for most of the spring semester, Molly’s clean bladework won her many victories and she placed 4th in individuals. Julie never let her opponents put down their guard, and she scored some great victories over Liberty with her fast attacks and ripostes.
Elizabeth and Julie will be heading to USACFCs in two weeks, and they couldn’t be more excited to bring what they’ve learned from VA Cup to Bucks County, PA!
 
Saber
Nicko Boylan ’22 combined flashy bladework and dynamic distance to dismantle each opponent he faced. He went undefeated in the team round, including scoring 5 swift counterattacks to bagel a Liberty fencer. In Nicko’s first direct elimination bout, he upset the 5th-seeded fencer, earning a top 8 finish before facing Triton in the quarterfinals. Daniel Bachman ’20 opened the day with comfortable victories over Virginia Tech and Mary Washington. When Virginia Tech’s fencers made the mistake of trying to out-muscle Daniel, he adapted to beat them at their own game. Daniel drew a very tough opponent in his first DE and finished in the top 16. In his final VA Cup, Robert Catlett ’18 breezed through the team round and easily won his first DE. Robert beat Nicko in the table of 8, before falling to the top seed from UVA in the semifinal. In the fence off for third place, Robert found himself down 7-2 against Virginia Tech’s top fencer. Robert showcased his tactical growth and completely changed his approach to the bout. His opponent couldn’t keep up with Robert’s diverse attacks, allowing Robert to storm back to a 15-9 victory and win the bronze medal! For the second consecutive year, Steven Pressendo ’20 faced a former teammate in the gold medal match. Having fenced his opponent many times before, Steven came in with a solid plan and defended his state title with a 15-7 win.
Women’s sabre dominated Virginia Cup. After winning first place for women’s sabre, we swept individuals with all medalists representing William & Mary. Chrysanthi Stevens fenced against fast saberists with smart, out-of-the-box quick actions. She won third place in individuals with a nerve-rackingly close semi-final bout against Riley Aiken that went 15-13. Riley was on top of her game this competition. She was by far the quickest saberist in the competition, and it showed when she won first place in individuals. Madeline Myers pulled out her favorite move, a counterattack to the forearm, every chance she could that day. In fact, in the final against Riley, she got a few counterattacks in a row! Madeline also displayed her harrowing endurance during the final, finishing in second place with a score of 15-12. Emory Magner gave it her all in her last colligate fencing competition. Her smooth extensions and quick parries allowed her to win fourth place in individuals. Mary McCants was a force to be reckoned with. She performed incredibly well in the round robin bouts, and she offered support to fellow teammates throughout the day, even when sabre fencing ended. She was patient with her parries and waited for the perfect moment to commit to the parry and riposte. Julianne Cook had patient and calculated attacks. She kept proper distance which helped her parry, and, most importantly, she maintained high spirits throughout the day. Every one of our women’s saberists performed beautifully in VA Cup. We are very proud of all of them, and we are lucky to have the opportunity to allow them all to compete.
Categories
MACFA

MACFA Champs Recap

This March, our men’s squads drove to Drew University for MACFA Champs, the final tournament of the MACFA season!

Épée

Men’s epee sent an experienced roster of Pulak Raj , Ben Coleman, and Greg Quigg into MACFA Champs, ready to take on every opponent the trio faced in MACFA this year. Greg used his well-timed remises to take his opponents by surprise and racked up many upset victories. Ben had a rough start to the day but was able to come back later in the day and pick his opponents wrists to pick up key victories. Pulak used his bladework to hold back his opponents and also continued to the individual round. Men’s epee beat many varsity fencers and is ready to dominate at SIFA.

Foil:

Men’s Foil fenced well at MACFA Champs. Matthew won multiple bouts, beating notable schools such as Army, Maryland and Yeshiva. Faisal and Ben also won bouts against multiple schools, including some intense 4 to 4 scoreline matches. Although none of men’s foil placed into the direct elimination round, they all placed well within their respective positions.

Sabre:

Daniel Bachman ’20, Robert Catlett ’18, and StevenPressendo ’20 approached their hardest competition of the year with focus and determination.  Daniel opened the day on an incredible note, winning early bouts against Stevens Institute of Technology, Rutgers, Hunter College, Yeshiva, Maryland, and TCNJ, all before the lunch break.  His sneaky reprises and aggressive beats established early leads that his opponents couldn’t overcome.  Robert’s constant energy kept his teammates positive throughout the day.  Additionally, his patient marches upset several varsity opponents from Lafayette, Hunter, and Yeshiva.  Despite having a rough day, Steven’s active bladework still bested the Drew A strip in front of a large home crowd- Steven’s 6th victory over Drew fencers this season.

Thanks again to those who came to cheer us on last weekend!

 

Our next event will be the Conomikes-Gutenberg Open (March 16-17) at William & Mary. Our next collegiate tournament will be the VA Cup right here at W&M (Sunday March 23-24).  Our full schedule is posted on our website: https://fencing.pages.wm.edu/schedule/

 

Past recaps can also be found on our website: https://fencing.pages.wm.edu/news/

 

Feel free to join our Alumni Facebook Group! https://www.facebook.com/groups/266119290117623/

Categories
USACFC

USACFC Recap

This year, the team traveled to Sportsplex in Bucks County, Pennsylvania for the USACFC event. The team was able to bring solid squads and competed to the best of their abilities.
Épée
Men’s epee entered CFCs ready to take on many tough club opponents. Pulak Raj, Benjamin Coleman, and Greg Quigg traveled to Bucks County, Pennsylvania for their biggest tournament of the year. Benjamin Coleman, fencing at his last USACFC tournament had his best showing yet, finishing with an even record. He took down many of his toughest opponents with his wrist picks on his way to victory. Greg Quigg had a difficult start but was able to reign it in by the end and pull off big victories, including a close 5-4 bout with GTU. Pulak Raj fenced and beat many opponents he lost to earlier in the season. Overall, men’s epee showed how much they had improved over the entire season.Nikki “Forrest” Petzer ‘19, Sarah “Shaw” Sues ‘20, and Chrystanthi “Ursa” Stevens ‘19, had many successes at CFCs this past weekend. Women’s epee squad focused strongly on teamwork on comradery throughout the tournament, supporting one another through wins and losses. Forrest had a rough start during individuals, but really came into her own as the day progressed, winning 4 of her 5 final bouts, and going undefeated the following day. Shaw had an impressive performance on Saturday, beating several fencers with her counterattacks and powerful bladework. Making a much appreciated epee appearance, resident saberist, Ursa, earned many key victories throughout the tournament, surprising many opponents with her saber speed and flare.Foil
Men’s Foil placed 17th at USACFCs, defeating Stonybrook, Denison and Virginia Tech on the way. The three men’s foilists that fenced were Matt Cusick, Faisal Al-Alami and Stuart Thomas. All three fencers performed well and won plenty of bouts. Some notable victories included Matt Cusick beating Willem Joseph of Stonybrook 5-4, as Joseph had placed 3rd in individuals the previous day. Another highlight of the event was Stuart beating all three members of Virginia Tech, securing the victory over that school. Faisal had some highlights of his own, one of which was securing a win over Denison University in the 9th and final bout. Overall, all three men’s foilists fenced well, and because none of them are graduating this year, you can expect an even stronger performance next year.

Elizabeth Sutterlin ’20, Julie Vu ’20, and Julianne Cook ’21 showed up at CFCs ready to fence their hardest at the last tournament of the year. The squad had a tough start on Saturday, but the three women were able to improve their seeding in team DEs on Sunday to earn 18th place. In the second and third DE rounds, W&M women’s foil swept both UT Knoxville and Denison 5-0.
Elizabeth refused to be discouraged by the stiff competition from other schools’ A-strips, and she used Saturday’s results as even more motivation to fence her best on Sunday—and did she ever! She scored W&M’s only victory against UC Berkeley and went 4-4 against an internationally ranked fencer from Boston University. In that bout she fought until the end, losing the close match in priority but happy with her performance. Julie gave the tournament her all as it was her first and final CFCs, and she had a great record coming out of pools on Saturday. She earned W&M some clutch victories, and she was the 4th seeded B-strip from her pool and the 11th seeded B-strip across all pools. Julianne came in hot to CFCs, having just fenced at SIFA Champs the previous weekend, and scored a decisive 5-2 victory over Liberty on Saturday. She continued fighting hard on Sunday, getting some great wins over fencers from UT Knoxville and Denison.
CFCs ended on a high note and was a great testament to all the work the squad put in this year. Women’s foil has no graduating seniors this spring, and so they are all looking forward to next semester, where they will continue to fence and grow together.

Saber
Men’s saber had a remarkably average start to CFCs. Daniel “Maverick” Bachman ’20, Robert “Triton” Catlett ’18, and Steven “Zaqqum” Pressendo ’20 each went 6-6, each had a total indicator between 0 and 5, and placed 19th of 38 teams going into day two. The second day went much better, with each fencer getting a chance to put the squad on their back. After a narrow loss to Tennessee, the team went on a tear. Our squad rolled over Rochester and our friends from TCNJ, winning both matches 5-1. Next, our squad ran into a strong Boston University team. Zaqqum’s quick ripostes brought the team an early lead. After several tight bouts, our team found ourselves tied with BU 4-4 and Maverick heading up for the final bout. His surprising remises won the first few points, before the BU fencer brought the bout score to 4 all. In front of the gathering crowd, Maverick pulled his opponent short, clinching the school for our squad. In the final bout of his collegiate career, Triton faced the strong UMass A-strip who individually finished in 8th place the day before. Triton fell behind early but adjusted his box footwork to bring the bout score to 4 all. Triton took a risk by committing to his attack very early in the touch, winning the bout, and securing a team victory over UMass. After months of hard work, the men’s saber squad finished the season on a four-match winning streak.

Women’s sabre put on a strong show at CFCs. Madeline “Mercury” Myers ’20 confused opponents on defense, baiting them into attacking on her terms. Riley “Serenitea” Aiken ’20 used her quick, skillful circle parries to punish her opponents for falling short. Mary “Prim” McCants ’21 perfected her disengages, neatly avoiding her opponents’ parries. The squad really bonded over the long weekend, finishing out the season in good spirits.

Categories
MACFA

MACFA BvC Recap

This February, our men’s squads drove to the New Jersery Institute of Technology for MACFA BvC, the second tournament of the spring semester!

Épée

Men’s epee went into MACFA BvC sporting the same roster as last week and had another impressive showing. Pulak Raj ’20, Ben Coleman ’19, and Greg Quigg ’21 picked up many big wins, fighting for a high seed at MACFA Champs, including a very closely contested 5-4 victory over Army. Ben didn’t make any of his bouts easy for his opponents, punishing fencers that walk too close into his distance. Pulak and Greg both scored key victories against varsity schools and learned a lot about their opponents through their bouts. Men’s epee looks forward to using what they’ve learned at MACFA Champs and will be practicing in preparation for their strongest competition yet.

Foil:

Men’s foil fought formidable competition during the MACFA BvC tournament. Representing the squad were Matthew Dreher ’19, Ben Witman ’20, and Stuart Thomas ’21. The trio faced varsity and club fencers from five different schools, scoring a win against one. It was in this round against Yeshiva University that all three foilists won their first bouts against varisty fencers, with Ben coming back from a 0-4 deficit and Stuart winning 5-0. Men’s foil also won two bouts against both Army and Hunter College. The squad looks forward to competing in their next tournament, the MACFA Championsip.

Saber:

Daniel Bachman ’20, Robert Catlett ’18, Steven Pressendo ’20 finished the MACFA regular season with their strongest results to date.  Daniel improved throughout the day, culminating in a dominant performance against Army.  His aggressive bladework overwhelmed his opponents, and his surprise flunge helped Daniel complete his clean sweep over West Point.  Robert showcased his adaptability by winning bouts in a variety of styles.  His speedy box footwork carried him to comfortable wins over varsity programs like Hunter College and Yeshiva.  Against strong competition from Steven’s IT, Robert’s signature patient offense helped him post one of his best records of the season.  Steven had an incredibly successful day, posting winning records against all schools except the regular season champions- NJIT.  Even though he couldn’t replicate his undefeated record against NJIT, he did still score a win over the reigning individual saber champion.  The saber squad hopes to build on this weekend’s success as they get ready for the upcoming MACFA Championship!

Thanks again to our alumni, current fencers, and families who came to cheer us on!

Individual Varsity Victories:

  • MS: Steven Pressendo, Robert Catlett, Daniel Bachman
  • MF: Ben Witman (first), Stuart Thomas (first), Matt Dreher (first)
  • ME: Pulak Raj, Greg Quigg