March 22, 2013
SAN ANTONIO, TX - The Penn State men's and women's fencing team remains in first place after the second day of the 2013 NCAA National Championships. The Nittany Lions ended the men's portion of the competition with 94 team points, which is an 11 point lead over second place Princeton (83 points). Notre Dame sits in third place with 77 team points, Harvard is fourth with 75 points, and Ohio State rounds out the top five with 70 team points.
The Nittany Lions finished the men's portion of the competition with two NCAA Runner-Ups, two third place finishes, and four All-American nods.
David Willette (Lafayette, Calif.) represented Penn State in the men's foil final. He dropped the gold medal match 10-15 to Olympian Alex Massialas of Stanford, to claim second place. Willette and fellow Nittany Lion star Miles Chamley-Watson (Philadelphia, Pa.) faced each other in the men's foil semifinal, with Willette coming out on top by a score of 15-12 to advance to the final. Both men earned All-American nods, which is Chamley-Watson's fourth and Willette's third. Chamley-Watson finished the competition tied for third place, and defeated 18 of his 23 opponents during the round robin portion of the competition.
Shaul Gordon (Richmond, Canada) finished an outstanding freshman season by being named the NCAA Men's Saber runner-up. He defeated Olympian and Two-Time National Champion Daryl Homer of St. John's 15-14 to earn a place in the final. The freshman lost the gold medal match to UPenn's Michael Mills by a score of 9-15. Gordon earned his first All-American status, and won 16 of his 23 bouts during the round robin portion of competition.
Team captain Adrian Bak (Franklin Lakes, N.J.) fenced his way into the number two seed of the saber semifinals, after defeating 19 of his 23 opponents. Bak lost a heartbreaking 14-15 semifinal to UPenn's Michael Mills to finish tied for third place. The junior claimed his third All-American status.
Vernon O'Garra (Huntington, N.Y.) finished the competition in 14th place in men's epee. The senior defeated 11 out of his 23 opponents with a +2 indicator. Benjamin Russell (Indiana, Pa.) finished right behind in 15th place. The sophomore won 11 of his 23 bouts with a +1 indicator. This was the first trip to Nationals for both Nittany Lions.
The women's portion of the competition will begin tomorrow with rounds 1-3 of each event. The final two rounds, as well as women's medal rounds, will take place on Sunday.
Recaps and results from each day of the 2013 National Championship will be available on gopsusports.com.