Though the Penn men's and women's fencing teams enjoyed much success throughout the course of the season, it was only a matter of time before their inexperience caught up to them.
The two teams -- neither of which has a single senior member -- combined for a ninth-place finish out of 24 teams at last weekend's NCAA National Championships in Houston, two spots worse than last year's showing.
Several fencers performed slightly below par, experiencing some difficulty in adjusting to the format of the tournament.
The system of the national championships is a round robin, in which 24 fencers compete in each weapon. Team standings are determined by the total number of individual victories.
Head coach David Micahnik would have preferred to end the season on a better note but was still pleased with his team's efforts.
"Everyone tried their best and did what they could do," he said. "But some days, things just don't happen like you want them to."
On the men's side, sophomore foilist Ron Berkowsky continued his outstanding campaign, finishing in fourth place in his weapon and earning First-Team All-American status for the second straight year.
"I was really happy with repeating," he said. "That was my goal going into this year's competition so that I could prove to myself that last year wasn't a fluke."
Junior foilist Mike Galligan also fenced well, coming in ninth place for the third consecutive year, one spot away from Second-Team All-American. Instead, he earned honorable mention.
In the sabre, freshman Matt Kolasa struggled against what Micahnik called "an extremely strong ... field," finishing in 17th place.
Freshman foilist Abby Emerson was the top performer for the women's team, earning All-American honorable mention through her ninth-place finish.
In addition, freshman Ilana Sinkin placed 15th in the foil, winning some impressive bouts.
Unexpectedly, junior Holly Buechel -- who earned First-Team All-America honors last year -- ended up in 21st place.
Freshman Cassandra Partyka's inexperience showed in the sabre, in which she finished third-to-last.
"The nationals are a lot harder than anything [else] at the collegiate level," Emerson said. "You can't relax in any of the bouts. ... You wait for the one easy bout, but it never comes."
Harvard won first place in the tournament, while Ivy foes Columbia and Princeton also finished ahead of the Quakers, in fifth and eighth, respectively.
Penn won a total of 74 bouts, four short of seventh-place Stanford's 78. Distancing itself from that pack was sixth-place St. John's, with 139 wins.
With everyone on the team expected to return, Micahnik is optimistic about the Quakers' chances next season. Penn also has some strong recruits lined up, including Berkowsky's younger brother, Jonathan.
"With more and more exposure to competition, consistency will come," Micahnik said.
"Still, ninth place is no terrible achievement."
