Jan. 23, 2010
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - The home team dominated the competition today at the Penn State Invitational hosted in the White Building. The one day event began at 8:30 this morning and concluded around 2:30 in the afternoon.
In the first round against Haveford College, The men's team won their bout 19-8 while the women's team won 25-2, going undefeated in the saber and epee.
The bouts against sixth-ranked University of Pennsylvania in the second round did not come easy, but the Penn State fencers held their own and still came out on top. The men's team lost 4-5 in the epee, but managed to come out with wins in the saber and foil to finish 16-11 overall. The women's team also had their struggles in this round, but won by a count of 19-8.
After a difficult second round against Penn, Penn State finished strong with big wins in the third and fourth round.
In the third round Penn State faced UNC and won by 21-6 in both the men's and women's competitions. The women's team also went undefeated in the epee portion of the dual.
In the final round, Penn State faced Drew University and had their best team finishes of the day. The women's team was undefeated in the epee and foil and finished 26-1, while the men's team went 9-0 in the epee and finished 23-4 overall.
Overall, Coach Kaidanov was satisfied with the performances in both the women's and men's competition, especially against Penn, who beat the men's team last year. He said the fencers had a "solid performance" and he is focused on what's coming ahead.
The fencers left shortly after the end of the Invitational to go to New York for the upcoming dual tomorrow, Jan. 24 at St. John's University. They will be competing against four of the nation's top-ranked competitors such as #2 Notre Dame and #3 and #6 Ohio State in the men's and women's rankings, respectively. St. John's is #8 in the men's rankings and Columbia is #4 in the women's and #5 in the men's rankings.
The strength of the competitors in tomorrow's duals will force Penn State to be at the top of their game in order to keep their #1 position in the nation. The results of the meets will be posted as soon as they are made available. For the latest news on Penn State Fencing, please visit gopsusports.com.