February 28, 2010

Fencing Ends Season in Sixth Place in Ivy League

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After a year of preparation, training and hard work, the fencing team ended the 2009-10 team season the same way it concluded the 2008-09 campaign: sixth place in the Ivy League.

At yesterday’s Ivy Champioships at Penn, the Red dropped its bouts to both Yale and Princeton, finishing 1-6 in the tournament. Princeton finished 6-0 to win the 2009-10 Ivy Championship. In addition, sophomore Rebecca Hirschfeld garnered second team All-Ivy honors in the epee weapon.

In saber, the Red fell by a score of 6-3. Freshman Audrey Speer led the Red saber squad with a 2-1 record, while freshman Beverly Yang also picked up a victory against the Bulldogs.

The foil squad, led by Hirschfeld, finished closer to the Bulldog foils, but ultimately suffered defeat as well, falling by a 5-4 mark. Still, Hirschfeld turned in an impressive performance, beating every Bulldog she faced en route to a perfect 3-0 record.

Like the saber squad, the Bulldog epees defeated the Red 6-3. Freshman Christie Robinson continued her impressive performance from Day 1 of the Championships, leading the epee squad with a 2-1 record.

In its next match against the Princeton Tigers, the Red fell, 20-7, to end the day with a 1-5 record. Princeton finished the tournament undefeated to win the Ivy League. Both saber and epee lost, 6-3, to the Tigers, while the Red foil squad was defeated 8-1. The Tigers, led by a talented freshman class, had five members of their squad earn All-Ivy honors.

Yang bounced back from a 1-2 start against Yale to finish 2-1 against Princeton. Yang led the saber team with a 9-9 record overall at the Ivy Championships. Speer also finished .500 on the day with a 3-3 record.

In the foil weapon, the Red only managed to pick up one win, courtesy of Hirschfeld, who ended the day with a 4-2 record, and an overall 13-5.

Freshman Addy McDonnell led the epee squad against Princeton, finishing 2-1. However, the Red only picked up one more win along the way, and fell, 6-3.

Although team competition ended for the Red yesterday, some members of the team will still continue fencing this season, as the NCAA regional championships approach. The regional championships will take place at Brown in Providence, R.I. The Red fencers who qualify at the regional championship will then go on to the NCAA National Championships at Harvard.

Original Author: Nathan Lowry