Quaker wins U19 North American Cup Gold

At the world’s largest fencing event, one Quaker came out on top.

Rising sophomore Joseph Isaac won the Under-19 Men’s Epee event at the North American Cup last Friday in Reno, NV outlasting 234 other competitors to win the gold medal.

The Morris Plains, N.J. native competed for nearly nine hours during the event, competing in early-round pool bouts and then 10 bouts of direct elimination and repechage.

He began the event hot, knocking off four straight wins. However, in his fifth match, Isaac lost a bout to Joseph Rafidi of M.I.T., 14-13, in overtime.

Fortunately for Isaac, he was able to continue to fence in the repechage — a double elimination format that generally allows the best fencers of the day to advance.

From this point on, the rising sophomore was perfect. He had a five-bout winning streak, taking each match by a margin of three points or more, setting up another match with Rafidi in the North American Cup final.

The two went to overtime again — the third time in three meetings dating back to M.I.T.’s Eric Sollee Invitational in February.

Isaac won the coin toss for priority and thus, had the advantage of needing to just play defense to get the win. However, with the help of his coach, he chose to go on the offensive, surprising his opponent, and ultimately bringing home the gold.

A full story can be found here.