Feb. 23, 2013
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - The top-ranked Penn State men's fencing team dropped their first dual of the season today to No. 8 UPenn at the Temple Invitational, which served as the final regular season competition. The women's team struggled in Philadelphia, and went 0-4 on the day to finish the regular season with a record of 14-11.
The men's foil team was unbeaten at Temple and finished the regular season with a perfect 24-0 record. This feat was accomplished without two of the foil team's stars, Olympian Miles Chamley-Watson and All-American David Willette. With the absence of some of Penn State's best, freshman Nobuo Bravo took control and finished with a 10-2 record. This brought Bravo's freshman campaign record to an outstanding 34-7.
The Penn State women were missing key competitors due to injuries, including former NCAA Champion Margherita Guzzi-Vincenti. Despite the disappointing day, the saber team excelled with a 4-0 performance. Junior Nicole Glon put in yet another impressive performance to go 10-2 at Temple, bringing her season-long record to 48-20.
The first dual of the day pit the Nittany Lion men against No. 8 UPenn. The 16-11 loss served as the only defeat for the Lions all season. The women took on No. 2 Princeton and lost a tough dual 18-9.
The men then moved on to face No. 3 Princeton, and battled their way to a close 14-13 victory. The women dropped their second dual of the day to No. 6 St. John's by a close 13-14 margin.
The third dual of the day featured Penn State against No. 10 Duke, and the Nittany Lions walked away with an astounding 18-9 victory over the Blue Devils. The women suffered their third loss of the day to No. 11 Duke, by yet another close score of 13-14.
The final opponent for the men was No. 5 St. John's, and the Lions pulled out the close 14-13 victory. The women lost their fourth and final dual of the day to No. 9 Temple by a mark of 12-15.
With the regular season now in the books, the Nittany Lions will move on to the Mid-Atlantic/South NCAA Regional competition on Saturday, March 9.