Feb. 9, 2010
Durham, N.C.- After two weeks of preparation, the Penn State fencers took control of the competition at the Duke Invitational, going undefeated in the women's team competition and winning five of six cups overall for the individual weapons in the men and women's competition. The duals began on Saturday Feb. 6 and concluded Sunday, Feb. 7.
The men's competition took place on Saturday. In the first match-up, Penn State took on UNC, which led to a 19-8 Penn State victory. The men's foil was solid, posting an 8-1 record against the Tar Heels.
In the next round, Duke proved to be a tough competitor, handing the Penn State fencers a 15-12 loss. Duke won in the saber 5-4 and the epee 7-2, leaving a deficit too large for Penn State to overcome.
The men's team came back strong in the next round against the Air Force fencers, winning by a score of 18-9. They won in the saber and epee, 8-1 and 7-2, respectively, but lost in the foil 6-3.
In their final match of the day, the Penn State fencers lost a close bout to Brandeis 14-13. Brandeis' 9-0 score in the men's foil was just enough to make up for the losses in the saber and epee.
Despite two team losses, the Penn State men's fencers emerged as leaders, winning the Men's Foil Cup and Men's Saber Cup for each individual weapon. The Air Force won the men's epee Cup.
In the women's competition on Sunday, strong all-around performances helped the Penn State women's fencers to sweep their competition in all four rounds as well as winning the individual cups in all three weapons.
In the first round, the Penn State women's team started with a bang, beating UNC 20-7. Strong 7-2 performances in the saber and foil carried the team to its first victory of the day.
In a heated bout against Duke in the second round, the women's team pulled through to beat Duke 16-11. Despite some individual losses in this round, they won as a team in all three weapons.
The Penn State women's fencers finished their day in a dominating fashion, completing back-to-back 25-2 victories against the Air Force and Brandeis. The fencers went 9-0 in the foil and 8-1 in the saber and epee against the Air Force and went 9-0 in the saber and 8-1 in the epee and foil against Brandeis.
If weather permits, the Penn State fencing team will take a break from dual action to head to Memphis, Tenn. for the Junior Olympics. The competition begins on Friday, Feb. 12 and concludes on Monday, Feb.15. The next dual action for the fencers is Saturday, Feb. 27 at Temple University, where they will have a rematch against Duke, St. John's and UNC.
For complete results of the Duke Invitational, please visit Duke's fencing webpage posted here, Duke Invitational Results. For information about the Junior Olympics, please visit usfencing.org.