Previous 2012 honorees: week-1 ... week-2 ... week-3 ... week-4
CF360 FENCERS OF THE WEEK ARCHIVE (2009-11 seasons)
• Notre Dame senior foilist Enzo Castellani joins pair of Princeton sophomores – foilist Eve Levin & sabreist Diamond Wheeler – as CF360 National Fencers of the Week ...
• Sacred Heart foilist Andrew Holmes tabbed National Rookie of the Week ...
• 10 Others Round Out the CF360 Primetime Performers of the Week
RELEASE: Feb. 29, 2012 CONTACT: Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
Notre Dame senior men's foilist Enzo Castellani (Keller, Texas) is joined by a pair of Princeton women's sophomore – foilist Eve Levin (New York, N.Y.) and sabreist Diamond Wheeler (Portland, Ore.) – as national fencers of the week for Feb. 20-26, 2012, as presented by CollegeFencing360.com (CF360). These three standouts headline a group of 14 honorees among the current CF360 Primetime Performers of the Week for college fencing. Sacred Heart freshman men's foilist Andrew Holmes (Centereach, N.Y.) is the CF360 National Rookie of the Week honoree.
Princecton sophomore women's foilist Eve Levin (right)
(Note – Headshots, action photos and fencer info. have been added to this release, for all 14 honorees ... week-3 honors page also recently finalised, link at top of page).
Notre Dame senior men's foilist
Enzo Castellani (left)
The Primetime Performer designation – awarded regularly on sister sites CollegeSports360, CollegeSoccer360 and CollegeBaseball360 – seeks to recognize achievement based primarily on situational factors, and not solely on raw stats. Selection for the CF360 weekly awards are based on any/all of the following "primetime" criteria:
• In general, preference is given based on the quality of the opponent, contribution to team success and situational factors involved in the fencer's accomplishments.
• Exhibited strong leadership and/or involved in clutch performances, match-winning bouts, noteworthy upsets, etc.
• Overcame adversity or extreme circumstances (for the team and/or individual).
• Bonus consideration is given for key performances away from team's home facility.
Princecton sophomore women's sabeist Diamond Wheeler (right)
College Fencing Primetime Performers of the Week
(Feb. 20-26, 2012 ... presented by CollegeFencing360.com)
* ENZO CASTELLANI ... action photo included at top of page
(Notre Dame ... Men's Foil ... Sr. ... Keller, TX)
... Rose to the occastion at U.S. Squad Championships (held at NYU), as only member of ND's top-3 men's foil unit that was competing in that unique event ... combined with Grant Hodges & Nik Crebs to win the men's foil competition, capped by 39-36 final vs. talented trio from #7 Penn ... racked up a 72-33 touch margin during ND's four wins, including 17-8 in the final match ... opened bouting vs. Penn by scoring 5-of-6 touches vs. past NCAA entrant Zane Grodman, later going 5-6 vs. Jason Chang mid-match (leaving Penn with a 25-21 lead) ... came through in the clutch, rattling off a 7-1 point margin vs. fellow All-American Vidur Kapur – lifting ND to the 39-36 win ... earlier went 23-14 in thrilling 45-44 semifinal vs. foilists from #3 St. John's (split the decisive final 10 touches vs. Eli Schenkel) ... his first bout vs. StJ yielded 10-4 score vs. Wilfred Curiso (for 10-9 ND lead), later registering key 8-5 margin vs Max Blitter that swung lead back to the Irish (27-26).
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LOWEYE DIEDRO
(Columbia ... Women's Sabre ... Jr. ... Freeport, NY)
... Fenced in team's final three matches during the U.S. Squad Championships (held at NYU), compiling a 43-33 touch margin for Lions women's sabre team that finished as runner-up ... went 15-11 in 45-22 quarterfinal win over Brown, then registered convincing 13-7 margin vs. another Ivy League rival (45-26 semifinal vs. Penn) ... her 5-1 round vs. Laura Paragano extended Columbia's lead vs. Penn to 20-6 ... led sabre squad in title match vs. talented and experienced sabre trio from #3 Princeton, splitting her 30 bouts to keep Lions within striking distance (her teammates were only 20-30, with Tigers posting 45-35 win) ... outscored fellow All-American Diamond Wheeler in her final bout (7-5), cutting Princeton's lead to 40-34.
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DANIEL GOMEZ TANAMACHI ... action photo currently not available
(Penn State ... Men's Foil ... Jr. ... Mexico City, Mexico)
... Had solid showing at Temple Invitational, while continuing to lead PSU men's foil team that is coping without All-America standouts Miles-Chamlpey Watson and David Willette (both taking a year off from college fencing, while attempting to qualify for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team) ... his 6-2 record at Temple included winning both of his bouts in PSU men's 14-13 win over #6 Duke ... won a pair of bouts to help his team nearly top #4 Princeton (13-14 loss), with his lone defeat coming vs. talented All-American Alexander Mills (3-5) ... added two more wins in bouting vs. #3 St. John's.
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* ANDREW HOLMES
(Sacred Heart ... Men's Foil ... Fr. ... Centereach, NY)
... Newcomer who combined with numerous veterans (including his brother and foil captain, Stuart Holmes) in leading #9-ranked Sacred Heart to New England Intercollegiate Fencing Conference (NEIFC) championship (held at Vassar) ... went undefeated in the team round, as Pioneers posted 29-0 record to claim men's foil title (also won sabre; 3rd in epee) ... won all nine of his bouts, with a +34 total-points indicator, in C-flight of the team round – but then proved his worth in the individual pool rounds (vs. several higher-ranked foilists), ultimately being edged by his brother in fence-off for the conference title (both were 4-1 in final pool, with Stuart +12 on indicators while Andrew was +8) ... carried his momentum into the U.S. Squad Championships the next day (at NYU), where he played key role in thrilling 45-44 quarterfinal vs. top-seeded veteran foil trio from #4 Princeton (Pioneers were the #9 seed) ... compiled team-best 17-12 touch margin in that pressure-packed match, highlighted by 3-2 round vs. All-American Amexander Mills (leaving Princeton's lead at 22-17) ... earlier had split 10 touches vs. David Mandle but saved his top-scoring round for the last, besting David Mandle 9-5 (cutting the Tigers' advantage to 34-33, with his brother ultimately outscoring Mills 6-4, for the team's one-point win).
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STUART HOLMES
(Sacred Heart ... Men's Foil ... Jr. ... Centereach, NY)
... Joined with his younger brother Andrew on a memorable weekend that included #9-seeded Sacred Heart shocking the top-seeded foilists from #4 Princeton, 45-44, in quarterfinal action at the U.S. Squad Chamipionships (held at NYU) ... split his 32 touches in that wild match – highlighted by decisive 6-4 final round vs. All-American Alexander Mills (Princeton was clinging to 40-39 lead entering that final round) ... added a solid showing in 45-26 semifinal loss vs. foil trio from #7 Penn (12-15 touch record), besting Jason Chang 8-5 and closing 3-5 vs. All-American Vidur Kapur ... a day earlier at Vassar, captained team to men's foil championship and overall men's title in the New England Intercollegiate Fencing Conference (NEIFC) final meet ... went undefeated in NEIFC team competition, as Pioneers foilists rolled to the tune of 29-0 ... won all 10 of his flight-A bouts, advancing to the indivual pools, and ultimately defeated his brother in fence-off for the title (both were 4-1 in final pool, with Stuart +12 on indicators while Andrew was +8).
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KATIE LeCLAIR
(Vassar ... Women's Foil ... Jr. ... Acton, MA)
... Veteran competitor who rallied in the confines of her home gym to win the New England Intercollegiate Fencing Conference (NEIFC) women's foil title ... had tied for thirrd (4th) out of flight-A, after gong 10-3 with +29 total-points indicator ... surged in the ensuing individual pool rounds, winning with 4-1 record (+23) to best Boston College's Ryan Western (who had gone 13-0 in flight-A) ... finished atop field tha also included Sacred Heart's Aileen Trella and Vikki Nuley of Brandeis ... led Vassar women's foil team that finished in three-way tie atop the NEIFC standings (32-7) ... BC edged Vassar for the overall women's team title, 93-88.
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* EVE LEVIN ... action photo included at top of page
(Princeton ... Women's Foil... Fr. ... New York, NJ)
... Proven foilist on the college level (2011 NCAA runner-up) who turned in strong showings at both the Temple Invitational and the U.S. Squad Championships (held at NYU) ... won 9 of her 10 bouts at Temple, including pair of victories in Princeton women's 15-12 win over #2 Penn State ... gave up only three touches while winning both her bouts in 15-12 win over #5 St. John's (5-2 vs. All-American Irina Koroleva) ... went 3-0 with 15-4 touch margin to lead 18-9 win over #7 Temple ... surrendered only two touches en route to winning both her bouts vs. #11 Duke (16-11 team win) ... compiled a dominating 64-25 point margin while competing in all four of her team's matches (relay scoring) at NYI ... won 14-of-22 touches in quarterfinal vs. Wayne State, followed by 20-3 showing vs. quality trio from #8 Northwestern (45-23) ... went 7-0 vs. Camille Provencal-Dayle in early action vs. Northwestern, followed by key 5-3 margin vs. fellow All-American Dayana Sarkisova (for 30-15 team lead) and then another round without a loss, 5-0 vs. NCAA tournament veteran Devynn Patterson ... closed with a dominating 18-4 touch advantage in 45-18 final vs. foilists from #4 Notre Dame (opened match with 5-0 showing vs. 2011 NCAA entrant Rachel Beck and closed with same score, vs. top newcomer Madi Zeiss).
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MICHAEL MILLS
(Penn ... Men's Sabre ... So. ... Short Hills, NJ)
... Continued to emerge as quality complement to Penn sabre All-American Evan Prochniak, during competition at the Temple Invitational and the U.S. Squad Championships (at NYU; relay scoring) ... helped lead Penn to the men's sabre title and overall men's championship at NYU, compiled a 64-39 touch margin over the course of four matches ... delivered key late round in sabre final vs. top seed Columbia, blowing away veteran Melvin Rodriguez by an 8-1 margin that changed a 32-35 deficit into a 40-36 Penn lead (Quakers went on to win, 45-43) ... totaled 10 touches earlier in match vs. Columbia, including 5-4 edge vs. talented newcomer Will Spear ... a couple hours earlier, joined his teammates in posting key 45-31 semifinal win over sabre squad rom #3 St. John's ... posted early 6-1 margin vs. StJ's Brandon Hubbard before getting the best of All-Americans Sean Buckley (5-3, for 30-23 team lead) and Alejandro Rojas (5-2, all but clinching spot in final with 40-27 Penn margin) ... earlier in the weekend, helped upset in-state rival Penn State (#2), 15-12, chipping in 5-2 win over Sean Moran (part of PSU's top weapon group) ... nearly went 3-0 in dual at Temple vs. St. John's (5-2 vs. Buckley, 4-5 vs. Rojas) and added 5-4 win over Princeton's Phil Dershwitz (a 2011 NCAA qualifier).
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ALBERT STARSHACK
(Boston College ... Men's Epee ... Jr. ... Chicago, IL)
... Added some high-energy moments to his trademark patient tactics, with that combination serving him well en route to winning men's epee title a New England Intercollegiate Fencing Conference (NEIFC) Championships, held at Vassar ... had finished second in flight-A (8-2, behind MIT's Joseph Rafidi) but went on to finish atop the final individual pool (4-1) ... placed first in talented field that included the Sacred Heart duo of Justin Dion and Mike Fenech, along with Vassar's Nick Johnson.
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KAMALI THOMPSON
(Temple ... Women's Sabre ... Sr. ... Teaneck, NJ)
... Showed her veteran savvy during home invitational, going 9-2 while facing a series of top sabre fencers ... registered two wins vs. #2 Penn State (her teammates combined for only five other victories), highlighted by 5-2 bout vs. 2011 NCAA entrant Nicole Glon (2-5 loss vs. All-American Monica Aksamit) ... completed impressive sweep (one-third of her team;s) against #3 Princeton, highlighted by 5-4 wins vs. pair of All-Americans: Diamond Wheeler and 2011 NCAA runner-up Eliza Stone ... added pair of victories afainst #11 Duke (2-5 loss vs. two-tim NCAA champion Becca Ward) and then won both of her bouts (10-1 margin) in 16-11 upset of #5 St. John's.
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BECCA WARD
(Duke ... Women's Sabre ... Sr. ... Portland, OR)
... Continued her historic career-long domination by winning all 12 of her bouts at the Temple Invitational, finishing the season with a near-perfect 83-1 record (98.8%) in team dual meets (lone loss was vs. ND's Lian Osier, at Northwestern) ... ended her collegeiate regular-season career having won 97.5% of her bouts (274-7) in dual meets (also 2009 & '11 NCAA champ, '10 NCA runner-up and three-time Mid-Atlantic/South Regional champion) ... never lost more than three dual-meet bouts in a season during her four seasons at Duke (two losses as freshman in 2009, only one in both '10 and '12) ... her run at Temple include 15-4 touch margin vs. #2 Penn State (5-1 vs. All-American Moica Aksamit; 5-0 vs. 2011 NCAA qualifier Nicole Glon) ... edged Princeton's Eliza Stone, 5-4, in rematch of 2011 NCAA title bout (also 5-2 vs. All-American Diamond Wheeler) ... added 15-5 margin vs. #5 St. John's while her sweep of #7 Temple included 5-2 bout vs. 2011 NCAA entrant Kamali Thompson.
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ADAM WATSON
(St. John's ... Men's Epee ... Jr. ... Enosburg, VT)
... Versatile talent (has fenced at NCAAs in both foil and epee) who helps comprise one of college fencing's top weapon trios, alongside fellow epee All-Americans Marat Israelian (two-time NCAA champ) and Nik Vollmer ... combined with Israelian and Vollmer to win the U.S. Squad Championships men's epee title (at NYU), besting the tough epee unit from #4 Princeton (45-32) ... opened that match with key early margin vs. 2011 NCAA runner-up Jon Yergler (4-3), later adding a 10-7 round vs. Andrew Meyers (for 20-14 team lead) and tight 4-3 finish vs. Ed Kelley (32-22) ... earlier totaled 14 touches in 45-29 quarterfinal vs. Brown and 13 points in 43-33 semifinal vs. epeeists from #1 Ohio State ... a day before, won five of his six bouts at Temple Invitational – including wins vs. Jonathan Parker (5-4) and Dylan Nollner (5-2) to help St. John's men post 19-8 win over #6 Duke ... his swep of Penn State (5-1 vs. Another Green) was part of StJ's 17-10 upset vs. the #2 Nittany Lions.
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RYAN WESTERN
(Boston College ... Women's Foil ... Fr. ... Mendham, NJ)
... Continued to combined with fellow rookie standout Cara Hall (epee) while leading Boston College women to team title at the New England Intercollegiate Fencing Conference (NEIFC) championships, held at Vassar ... her perfect run through the A-flight (13-0; +38) pushed BC into a three-way tie atop the women's foil standings, with Eagles ultimately outlasting runner-up Vassar (93-88) to win the NEIFC women's championship ... allowed only 1.7 touches per bout in her 13-0 showing ... went on to tie for second in final indvidual pool (3-2), while facing top opponents such as Vassar's Katie LeClair and Sacred Heart's Aileen Trella (flight-A had included Vikki Nunley of Brandeis).
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* DIAMOND WHEELER ... action photo included at top of page
(Princeton ... Women's Sabre ... So. ... Portland, OR)
... Combined with fellow NCAA Tournament veterans Eliza Stone (2011 NCAA champion) and Joanna Cichomski to win the women's sabre title at the U.S. Squad Championships (held at NYU), as the #3 Princeton women impressively swept all three weapons ... doubled up her two opponents in dominating 45-14 semifinal vs. sabre squad from #8 Northwesern ... added 15 touches in 45-35 final vs. top-seeded sabre trio from #6-ranked Columbia ... opened that title match with key 5-3 margin vs. two-time All-American Sammy Roberts, adding 5-2 round vs. Esane Diedro that stretched team lead to 20-12 ... a day earlier, compiled 8-2 record while fencing against several top competitors at the Temple Invitational ... her sweep played lead role in Princeton women's 15-12 win over #2 Penn State (5-2 vs. All-American Monica Aksamit; 5-0 vs. 2011 NCAA qualifier Nicole Glon) ... similarly swept her bouts (all 5-1) in 15-12 win over #5 St. John's, adding pair of wins in 18-9 team final vs. #7 Temple (4-5 vs. another past NCAA entrant, Kamali Thompson) ... also won twice in 16-11 win over Duke team that is receiving 11th-most votes in coaches poll (2-5 loss vs. two-time NCAA champion Becca Ward).
* Castellani, Levin & Wheeler are the CF360 National Fencers of the Week, while Andrew Holmes is the National Fencing Rookie of the Week