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Guest Column – NCAA Women's Epee Preview, by Hannah Safford (Princeton '13)
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CF366 Guest Columns – NCAA Capsule Previews
• Women's Foil – Dayana Sarkisova (Northwestern '13) | • Women's Epee – Hannah Safford (Princeton '13)
• Women's Sabre – Caroline Vloka (Harvard '12) | • Men's Foil – TBA
• Men's Epee – Jonathan Yergler (Princeton '13) | • Men's Sabre – Aleks Ochocki (Penn State '12)
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Hannah Safford (pictured at right) represented Princeton in women’s epée at the 2011 and 2012 NCAA Fencing Championships and was an NCAA alternate on Princeton’s championship-winning team in 2013. Now a graduate student in engineering and public policy, Safford remains involved in the collegiate fencing circuit as a team manager for Princeton.
Note – additional basic bio. info. on all 24 entrants, provided by CF360, may be added to this page later in the week.
2014 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS – Women's Epee (capsule preview)
By Hannah Safford (Princeton ’13)
The 2013 NCAA Fencing Championships marked the end of collegiate fencing for three former NCAA women’s epée champions: Notre Dame’s Courtney Hurley (in ’11 and ’13), Ohio State’s Katarzyna Dabrowa (’12), and Penn State’s Marg Guzzi (’10). The graduation of these three talented fencers—particularly the graduation of four-time NCAA medalists Hurley and Guzzi—leaves the women’s epée field wider open than it has been in any year in recent history. In fact, 2014 is the first year since 2009 that the field has not included at least one former NCAA champion.
Guest Column – NCAA Women's Foil Preview, by Dayana Sarkisova (Northwestern '13)
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CF366 Guest Columns – NCAA Capsule Previews
• Women's Foil – Dayana Sarkisova (Northwestern '13) | • Women's Epee – Hannah Safford (Princeton '13)
• Women's Sabre – Caroline Vloka (Harvard '12) | • Men's Foil – TBA
• Men's Epee – Jonathan Yergler (Princeton '13) | • Men's Sabre – Aleks Ochocki (Penn State '12)
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Dayana Sarkisova (pictured) fenced to All-America honors during all four of her seasons at Northwestern, finishing in the top-10 of the NCAAs every year from 2010-13 – highlighted by a trip to the medal round in her freshman season. The first Northwestern foilist ever to earn first team All-America status (top-4 at the NCAAs), Dayana currently works at ESPN in Bristol, Conn., where she is an editor for ESPN Insider, with a focus on college basketball and professional hockey. She also serve as a social media producer for ESPN's College GameDay Live.
Note – additional basic bio. info. on all 24 entrants, provided by CF360, may be added to this page later in the week.
Guest Column – NCAA Men's Epee Preview, by Jon Yergler (Princeton '13)
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CF366 Guest Columns – NCAA Capsule Previews
• Women's Foil – Dayana Sarkisova (Northwestern '13) | • Women's Epee – Hannah Safford (Princeton '13)
• Women's Sabre – Caroline Vloka (Harvard '12) | • Men's Foil – TBA
• Men's Epee – Jonathan Yergler (Princeton '13) | • Men's Sabre – Aleks Ochocki (Penn State '12)
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CF360 Guest Column – 2014 NCAA Men’s Epee Preview, by Jon. Yergler (Princeton ’13)
Intro from CF360 editor Pete LaFleur – College Fencing 360 was thrilled that former Princeton standout Jonathan Yergler (that's him, pictured at right) shared his keen, well-articulated insights about the 2014 NCAA men’s epee field (see further down this page, after this CF360 intro. section). As many of you know, Jon. fenced in the NCAA men’s epee final bout three times (winning in 2012) and was an All-American all four of his seasons at Princeton (also 9th in 2010). Of course, he and classmate Ed Kelley reached the 2013 NCAA medal round (semifinals) after racking up plenty of wins in the round-robin – helping Princeton ultimately go on to claim the 2013 NCAA Combined Men’s and Women’s Fencing Championship title.
2014 NCAA Fencing Championships Individual Qualifers
RELEASE: March 11, 2014
Contact: Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
Three teams – defending champion Princeton, perennial power Penn State and tournament host Ohio State – have received the maximum 12 indvidual qualifers for the upcoming NCAA Combined Men's and Women's Fencing Championship, to be held March 20-23 at French Fieldhouse in Columbus, Ohio. A year ago, Princeton and eventual runner-up Notre Dame were the only teams that qualified the maximum 12 fenders
It is not unprecedented (but it is rare) for a team with 11 entrants to win the title over a team with the full 12. Most notably, it happened in 2005 when Notre Dame's 11-fencer contingent rallied in Houston to beat another 11-fencer team, Ohio State, in a 173-171 thriller that played out in Houston (St. John's had been the only team to qualify 12 but finished third, at 162). That 2005 NCAA format closed with two days of the women's bouts, as Notre Dame surged past OSU – with the ND six-fencer contingent comprised entirely of fencers who competed in at least one NCAA individual final during their respective careers (foil–Alicja Kryczalo and Andrea Ament; epee–Kerry Walton and Amy Orlando; sabre–Mariel Zagunis and Valerie Providenza).
College Fencing Weekly Honor Roll – 2014 week-3 (quick look)
Previous CF360 2014 National Weekly Fencing Awards – week-1 | week-2
College Fencing Primetime Performers of the Week #3
(Jan. 27–Feb. 2, 2014 ... presented by CollegeFencing360.com)
Alanna Goldie (Ohio State ... Women's Foil ... Fr. ... Calgary, Alberta)
Chris Monti (Duke ... Men's Sabre ... Fr. ... Chicago, IL)
Chantal Montrose (Temple ... Women's Epee ... Sr. ... Alexandria, VA)
Alexa Rohan (Stanford ... Women's Sabre ... Fr. ... Stony Brook, NY)
Jorge Rojas (Stevens Tech ... Men's Foil ... Jr. ... Guaynabo, Puerto Rico)
Zuzanna Sobczak (Wayne State ... Women's Foil ... So./Fr. ... Gdansk, Poland))
Gracie Stone (Princeton ... Women's Sabre ... So. ... Chicago, IL)
Christian Vastola (NYU ... Men's Foil ... So. ... Briarcliff Manor, NY)
• National Fencer of the Week and Rookie of the Week to be announced later today and will be posted via the Awards tab (along with full release, including photos & info. on all eight honorees).
Penn State Invitational – Results (1–12–14); courtesy CF360
Note – more details (individual highlights and hey bout info.) still being added to this page, as we receive the information. Content provided courtesy of College Fencing 360.
PENN STATE INVITATIONAL – Sunday, Jan. 12, 2014
(White Gymnasium … University Park, PA) courtesy CollegeFencing360.com
MEN'S RESULTS
Columbia (5-0 … 101-34 … foil 31-14 … epee 36-9 … sabre 34-11) – did not face Penn
Columbia men def. Penn State, 15-12 (foil 3-6 … epee 6-3 … sabre 6-3)
Columbia men def. Duke, 16-11 (foil 5-4 … epee 7-2 … sabre 4-5)
Columbia men def. North Carolina, 20-7 (foil 8-1 … epee 6-3 … sabre 6-3)
Columbia men def. Haverford, 23-4 (foil 6-3 … epee 8-1 … sabre 9-0)
Columbia men def. Drew, 27-0 (foil 9-0 … epee 9-0 … sabre 9-0)
Penn State (5-1 … 114-21 … foil 43-2 … epee 35-10 … sabre 36-9) – see above for loss vs. Columbia
Penn State men def. Univ. of Pennsylvania, 23-4 (foil 9-0 … epee 7-2 … sabre 7-2)
Penn State men def. Duke, 18-9 (foil 7-2 … epee 5-4 … sabre 6-3)
Penn State men def. North Carolina, 21-6 (foil 9-0 … epee 7-2 … sabre 5-4)
Penn State men def. Haverford, 25-2 (foil 9-0 … epee 7-2 … sabre 9-0)
Penn State men def. Drew, 27-0 (foil 9-0 … epee 9-0 … sabre 9-0)
Guest Column: 2013 NCAA Women's Sabre Projection, by Caroline Vloka (Harvard '12)
Former Harvard standout Caroline Vloka is CF360's final guest columnist for 2013 NCAA analysis and projection. Vloka certainly can speak from experience, as she was in the running for the NCAA women's saber title all four years of her career (5th or higher each season). Vloka won the NCAA title as a sophomore, one rear after losing in the 2009 final vs. eventual 3-time champion Becca Ward of Duke. As a junior, Vloka made a third straight trip to the medal round (top-4) and narrowly missed a top-4 finish as a senior (5th).
By Caroline Vloka (Harvard '12)
The NCAA Fencing Championship is a competition unlike any other. It is fast-paced, and every five-touch bout counts for more than any fencer would like. The pool bout in sabre goes by so quickly that it's almost as if you hadn’t fenced at all. It is very unnerving after the first round, to see that more than 1/5th of the competition is already over. It is hard to recover from a two-bout loss early on, and the mindset is everything.
This competition tests your mental toughness.The fencer must change the strategy from one opponent to the next, within only a few minutes.The competitors are some of the best in the county, and each fencer is pushed to their mental limits in trying to compose a new approach for each bout.
Guest Column: 2013 NCAA Women's Epee Projection, by Lydia Kopecky (Columbia '13)
Columbia senior epeeist Lydia Kopecky was gracious enough to provide us with her insight and projections on the 2013 NCAA women's epee field. Kopecky had a disappointing and sudden end to her own 2013 season, placing lower than expected at the Northeast Regional following a very strong season leading up to that point. The two-time All-American and there-time NCAA qualifier currently is 9th in the U.S. women's epee ranking and is a regular competitor at international tournaments.
(see CF360 front page for links to other 2013 NCAA guest columns)
By Lydia Kopecky (Columbia '13)
By far, the NCAA field for women's epee in 2013 is stronger than it hass been in years. With two Olympic medalists, three former NCAA individual champions, countless U.S. National Team members, and many foreign national team members, I predict the results of this weekend are going to come down to indicators (total points margin). Because of how strong the field is, I believe there won't be a decisive and predicable top four, but rather an extremely strong top-8 that is fighting for every touch. The pressure will be high and I think there will be some unpredictable 5-touch upsets from the beginning, making every future bout count if anyone will be in line for a title. I predict that all of the top-8 will be seasoned NCAA fencers and that experience will be key to success at this tournament.
Guest Column: 2013 NCAA Men's Foil Observations, by Reggie Bentley (Notre Dame '12)
By Reggie Bentley (Notre Dame '12) –
The fencers in the 2013 NCAA men’s foil event have the honor and misery of competing in what is probably the strongest NCAA men’s foil field ever assembled. This year’s competition includes three former NCAA individual champions, three Olympians, and numerous former team champions. Suffice it to say that it is very likely several former champions of the individual event may very well not make the final four (semifinals).
It therefore goes without saying that any predictions about this year’s results are difficult to make at best. We have some help, however, with the completion of one day of the competition — but there was no surprise Thursday about one fencer: Gerek Meinhardt. After an undefeated first day, Notre Dame’s finest came out first in the field, just ahead of freshman Michael Dudey of Princeton. Dudey is one of several freshmen to excel in the tournament this year, along with Meinhardt’s former teammate and fellow Olympian, Alexander Massialas (Stanford), who recorded 12 victories for his school.
Guest Column: 2013 NCAA Men's Sabre Projection, by Aleks Ochocki (Penn State '12)
We have a special treat leading into the 2013 NCAA Fencing Championship, as former Penn State great Aleks Ochoki has sent along his observations and predictions – penned during the long flight to Moscow (Russia, not Idaho), no less, for an upcoming World Cup. Ochocki won the NCAA sabre title in 2009, edging fellow freshman and 2012 U.S. Olympian Daryl Homer in a 15-14 classic, and he closed his career with a second title in 2012 (over former Harvard fencer Valentin Staller). Ochocki, who spent this season as an assistant coach at Steevns Tech, remains active at international competitions and currently is the 7th-ranked U.S. men's sabre fencer. …
2009 Men's-Sabre Final
Daryl Homer/StJ vs. Aleks Ochocki/PSU; photos+video hybrid, from CF360
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My observations and predictions for the 2013 NCAA men's sabre competition
by Aleks Ochocki
The NCAA fencing championships is one of the rare collegiate championship where every competitor tests their skills against everyone in their field. The field is set and the regular season stats don't matter anymore, every point could decide each fencer's chances on the possibility to be crowned NCAA champion (and, in some cases, to help win the team title).
NCAA Combined Fencing Championship – 2013 Qualifiers
RELEASE: March 12, 2013
Contact: Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
Only two teams – Notre Dame and Princeton – have received the maximum 12 indvidual qualifers for the upcoming NCAA Combined Men's and Women's Fencing Championship, to be held March 21-24 at Freeman Coliseum (near the AT&T Center) in San Antonio. A year ago, five teams received the maximum 12 entries but there still will be a high number of teams (8) that could be in the mix for the 2013 team title, as six have qualified 11 fencers for the 2013 championship: Columbia, Harvard, defending champion Ohio State, Penn State, St. John's and Stanford.
It is not unprecedented (but it is rare) for a team with 11 entrants to win the title over a team with the full 12. Most notably, it happened in 2005 when Notre Dame's 11-fencer contingent rallied to beat another 11-fencer team, Ohio State, in a 173-171 thriller that played out in Houston (St. John's had been the only team to qualify 12 but finished third, at 162).
The 2013 NCAA allotment marks the fewest teams with the full 12 entrants (2) since St. John's was the only 12-fencer team back in 2005. From 2006-12, there was an average of 3.7 teams per year with the full 12-fencer contingent at the NCAAs (five in 2010 and '12; four in '08; three in '06, '07, '09 and '11).
2013 NCAA Fencing Midwest Regional – Men's Entries
by Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
• CLICK HERE for Midwest Regional women's entries
Fencers from the Midwest Region will compete in the final stage of qualification for the 2013 NCAA Fencing Championships (March 21-24, in San Antonio) during the 2013 NCAA Midwest Regional, to be held on Saturday & Sunday, March 9-10, at Notre Dame (starting 9 a.m. ET, in the Joyce Center's Castellan Family Fencing Center). The women's competition will be held on March 9 and the men on Sunday the 10th.
Here are the particulars:
• The Midwest Regional includes fencers from seven schools that sponsor varsity fencing teams, most notably top-10 nationally ranked teams from Notre Dame, Ohio State and Northwestern (women's team only) … along with Wayne State, Cleveland State, Detroit and Lawrence.
• Men's participants in the Midwest Regional are listed below (men's entries linked above). The entry lists below are grouped by weapon and sorted in "seeding order" (which is based on individual results during team dual-meet competition). Fencers among the top-30 "national seeds" also are noted in the listing below.
Women's Entries – 2013 NCAA Fencing Northeast Regional
by Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
CLICK HERE for Northeast Regional men's entries
Fencers from the Northeast Region will compete in the final stage of qualification for the 2013 NCAA Fencing Championships (March 21-24, in San Antonio) during the 2013 NCAA Northeast Regional, to be held on Sunday, March 10, at St. John's (starting 9 a.m. ET, in Carnesecca Arena and Taffner Fieldhouse).
Here are the particulars:
• The Northeast Regional includes fencers from 18 schools that sponsor varsity fencing teams, most notably top-10 nationally ranked teams from St. John's, Columbia and Harvard … along with Boston College, Brandeis, Brown, Cornell (women only), Hunter, MIT, CCNY (women), NYU, Queens College (women), Sacred Heart, Tufts (women), Vassar, Wellesley (women), Yale and Yeshiva.
• Women's participants in the Northeast Regional are listed below (men's entries linked above), grouped by weapon and sorted in "seeding order" (which is based on individual results during team dual-meet competition). Fencers among the top-30 "national seeds" also are noted in the listing below.
2013 NCAA Fencing Northeast Regional – Men's Entries & Info.
by Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
Fencers from the Northeast Region will compete in the final stage of qualification for the 2013 NCAA Fencing Championships (March 21-24, in San Antonio) during the 2013 NCAA Northeast Regional, to be held on Sunday, March 10, at St. John's (starting 9 a.m. ET, in Carnesecca Arena and Taffner Fieldhouse).
CLICK HERE for Northeast Regional women's entries
Here are the particulars:
• The Northeast Regional includes fencers from 18 schools that sponsor varsity fencing teams, most notably top-10 nationally ranked teams from St. John's, Columbia and Harvard … along with Boston College, Brandeis, Brown, Cornell (women only), Hunter, MIT, CCNY (women), NYU, Queens College (women), Sacred Heart, Tufts (women), Vassar, Wellesley (women), Yale and Yeshiva.
• Men's participants in the Northeast Regional are listed below (women's entries to be linked above), grouped by weapon and sorted in "seeding order" (which is based on individual results during team dual-meet competition). Fencers among the top-30 "national seeds" also are noted in the listing below.
2013 NCAA Fencing West Regional – Entries & Info.
by Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
Fencers from the West Region will compete in the final stage of qualification for the 2013 NCAA Fencing Championships (March 21-24, in San Antonio) during the 2013 NCAA West Regional, to be held on Saturday, March 9-at UC San Diego.
Here are the particulars:
• The West Regional in 2013 will include fencers from nationally-ranked Stanford, plus UC San Diego and Air Force (Cal Tech is ineligible for 2013 NCAA competition.
• Participants in the West Regional are listed below.. The entry lists below are grouped by weapon and sorted in "seeding order" (which is based on individual results during team dual-meet competition). Fencers among the top-30 "national seeds" also are noted in the listing below.
• Each team can have a maximum of 12 men's competitors and 12 women at each Regional (distributed in any combination among the three weapon groups). For example, Penn State is very deep at men's foil and is bringing five competitors in that weapon … but could have brought even more, as senior Daniel Gomez is not among the PSU competitors (he would have been the #5 overall men's foil seed at the M-A/S Regional, with three of his teammates among the top-4).
NCAA Fencing Midwest Regional – 2013 Women's Entries
by Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
• CLICK HERE for Midwest Regional men's entries
Fencers from the Midwest Region will compete in the final stage of qualification for the 2013 NCAA Fencing Championships (March 21-24, in San Antonio) during the 2013 NCAA Midwest Regional, to be held on Saturday & Sunday, March 9-10, at Notre Dame (starting 9 a.m. ET, in the Joyce Center's Castellan Family Fencing Center). The women's competition will be held on March 9 and the men on Sunday the 10th.
Here are the particulars:
• The Midwest Regional includes fencers from seven schools that sponsor varsity fencing teams, most notably top-10 nationally ranked teams from Notre Dame, Ohio State and Northwestern (women's team only) … along with Wayne State, Cleveland State, Detroit and Lawrence.
• Women's participants in the Midwest Regional are listed below (men's entries linked above). The entry lists below are grouped by weapon and sorted in "seeding order" (which is based on individual results during team dual-meet competition). Fencers among the top-30 "national seeds" also are noted in the listing below.
2013 NCAA Fencing Mid-Atlantic/South Regional – Women's Entries & Info.
by Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
CLICK HERE for Mid-Atlantic/South men's entries
Fencers from the Mid-Atlantic/South Region will compete in the final stage of qualification for the 2013 NCAA Fencing Championships (March 21-24, in San Antonio) during the 2013 NCAA Mid-Atlantic/South Regional, to be held on Saturday, March 9, at Lafayette College (starting 8 a.m. ET, in Kamine Gymnasium).
Here are the particulars:
• The Mid-Atlantic/South Regional includes fencers from 13 schools that sponsor varsity fencing teams, most notably top-10 nationally ranked teams from Princeton, Penn State, the University of Pennsylvania, Duke and Temple (women's team only) … along with Drew, Fairleigh Dickinson (women's team), Haverford, Johns Hopkins, Lafayette, N.J.I.T., North Carolina, and Stevens Tech.
• Women's participants in the M-A/S Regional are listed below (link to men's entries included above), grouped by weapon and sorted in "seeding order" (which is based on individual results during team dual-meet competition). Fencers among the top-30 "national seeds" also are noted in the listing below.
NCAA Fencing 2013 Mid-Atlantic/South Regional – Men's Entries & Tournament Info.
by Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
CLICK HERE for Mid-Atlantic/South women's entries
Fencers from the Mid-Atlantic/South Region will compete in the final stage of qualification for the 2013 NCAA Fencing Championships (March 21-24, in San Antonio) during the 2013 NCAA Mid-Atlantic/South Regional, to be held on Saturday, March 9, at Lafayette College (starting 8 a.m. ET, in Kamine Gymnasium).
Here are the particulars:
• The Mid-Atlantic/South Regional includes fencers from 13 schools that sponsor varsity fencing teams, most notably top-10 nationally ranked teams from Princeton, Penn State, the University of Pennsylvania, Duke and Temple (women's team only) … along with Drew, Fairleigh Dickinson (women's team), Haverford, Johns Hopkins, Lafayette, N.J.I.T., North Carolina, and Stevens Tech.
• Men's participants in the M-A/S Regional are listed below (women's entries linked above), grouped by weapon and sorted in "seeding order" (which is based on individual results during team dual-meet competition). Fencers among the top-30 "national seeds" also are noted in the listing below.
2013 NYU Invitational Final Results & Stats
Previous NYU Invitational Pages – 2012 men & women | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 (courtesy CF360)
Jan. 28, 2013 Contact: Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
A long weekend of fencing in New York City concluded for several teams, most notably the squads from Ohio State, Notre Dame, St. John's and Columbia – each of which competed at both the St. John's Invitational on Saturday (Jan. 26) and Sunday's crosstown NYU Invitational. CF360's customary rundown of the results, plus weapon-group breakdowns, is included at the bottom of this page, while previous CF360 recap pages from the annual NYU Invitational are included above.
Sunday's bouting at NYU extended several trends from the previous day in the Bronx – namely continued excellence from the 2nd-ranked Notre Dame women and the #3 Columbia women's squad. The ND women followed up a 5-0 showing at St. John's by going 4-1 at NYU, with the only loss being a 14-13 battle against Columbia (which was 3-2 at StJ, then 5-0 at NYU). Over the course of the two days, the Notre Dame women were 9-1 while winning 82 more bouts than they lost. Columbia's women had an 8-2 overall weekend, going +30 in bouts won over the two days.
2013 St. John's Invitational Final Results & Stats
Previous StJ Invitational Pages – 2012 men & women | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 (courtesy CF360)
Jan. 27, 2013 Contact: Pete LaFleur (editor@collegefencing360.com)
Longtime foes and perennial national contenders Penn State and Notre Dame ruled the day at the St. John's Invitational on Saturday, Jan. 26, with each of those fencing programs posting matching overall marks with an 8-2 combined record (men and women) and identical +30 margins of bouts won. The #2-ranked Penn State men swept the elite field (5-0, +35), as did the #2 Notre Dame women (5-0, +25). Complete team results and additional team/weapon group stats included at the bottom of this page.
(Notes – an in-depth look at key matchups, individual leaders, etc., from the 2013 St. Johns Invitational also will be posted later this week and linked to this page. Previous CF360 recap pages from the annual StJ tournament are included above.)
Host St. John's – despite competing with only two men's sabre fencers (the #5 Red Storm men forfeited three bouts in each match) – had a strong showing on the men's side, going 4-1 with the only loss coming 15-12 vs. Penn State. The men's standings ended with an evenly staggered flow (one team with five wins, one with four, etc.) but the women's competition was bunched in the middle – as three tams (#5 Penn State, #3 Columbia and #6 St. John's) all went 3-2 while #4 Ohio State was 2-3. All three women's teams that were 3-2 finished 65-70 in bouts won while the 2-3 Ohio State women actually had a higher bouts-won margin (+5, 70-65) than those other three teams, due to losing 14-13 vs. Notre Dame and 15-12 vs. both Columbia and St. John's (the OSU women 16-11 vs. PSU).