The Penn fencing team used a little of the old and a lot of the new as the women took fourth place and the men finished sixth at the NCAA Championships last weekend at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass.
Youth was dominant on the women's side, as freshman Annika Eiremo led the Quakers with her fifth-place finish in the sabre, while fellow freshman Katelyn Sherry was two spots back. Another classmate, Holly Buechel, placed ninth in the epee.
However, the freshman class was not the only one to achieve success in the women's competition. Sophomores Livia Rurarz-Huygens,Christina Kaneshige and junior Emmanuelle Humblet all recorded top 20 performances.
On the men's side, senior Andy Radu finished his career earning eighth place in the foil competition. Freshman Michael Galligan finished one spot behind him, while in the sabre, sophomore Mark Kindrachuk finished 17th.
With the exception of Radu, all of these fencers will return to a lineup that may have been misleading this year, according to Penn coach Dave Micahnik.
"The fact is that both teams are relatively young, but that doesn't mean they're inexperienced," Micahnik said. This year's freshmen, for example, entered Penn having competed at very high levels in high school.
But Radu, who closes his senior campaign as a second-team All-American, can look back on a successful final tournament.
Radu nearly had to withdraw from competition because of cramps in his hand and leg which were affecting his motion on the strip and his control of the weapon.
After losing to a low-ranked opponent, Radu had to face former All-American Roland Breden of Cal State Fullerton, whom he had little success against in the past.
"I really want to beat this guy," Radu told himself before the bout. "I think I'm better than him. He's always beaten me. I want to have at least one victory against him."
After losing the first two touches, Radu came back to win the bout, 5-4, scoring the decisive touch on an aerial attack right before his leg gave out.
In fact, the Red and Blue have been overcoming injuries all season. With her seventh-place finish, Sherry showed she was recovered from a dislocated patella that immobilized her a few weeks earlier.
Radu's eighth-place finish barely secured him a spot on the All-American team, reserved only for the top eight finishers at the NCAA Championship. Joining him on the second team were Eiremo and Sherry. Penn also landed two fencers on the honorable mention team, Buechel and Galligan.
While the championships marked the end of the 2004 season, it also illustrated the Quakers' immense potential for next year.
On the women's side, the dominant sabre trio of Eiremo, Sherry and Cassandra Frey will all return as sophomores.
"I know we're losing a couple of people, which will be hard to make up for," Eiremo said. "But overall, I think we're going to do just as well if not better."
Team standings: Men
1. Ohio State 194; 2. Penn State 160; 3. Notre Dame 153; 4. St. John's 149; 5. Columbia 146; 6. PENN 104; 7. Princeton 7; 8. Harvard 73; 9. Wayne State 62; 10. Stanford 60
Men's Sabre
1. Crompton, Ohio State 17. Kindrachuk, PENN
Men's Foil
1. Ellis, Ohio State; 8. Radu, PENN;
9. Galligan, PENN
Men's Epee
1. Horvath, St. John's
Team standings: Women
1. Ohio State 97; 2. Notre Dame 96; 3. Penn State 84; 4. PENN 68; 5. Columbia 60; 6. Northwestern 50; 7. Princeton 48; 8. St. John's; 9. Harvard 35; 10. Wayne State
Women's Sabre
1. Providenza, Notre Dame; 5. Eiremo, PENN
Women's Foil
1. Kryczalo, Notre Dame; 16. Kaneshige, PENN; 18. Humblet, PENN
Women's Epee
1. Garina, Wayne State; 9. Buechel, PENN; 20. Rurarz-Huygens, PENN
