UNIVERISTY PARK, Pa.– The Penn State Men's fencing team wrapped up the first day of the 2021 NCAA Championship tournament at the Bryce Jordan Center Thursday, with three of their six fencers in the top five overall for their respective weapons.
The Penn State men's epee squad was very successful on day one of the competition. Sophomore Jonathan Piskovatskov (Houston, Texas) led all men's epee fencers, winning 14 out of 15 of his bouts for a .933 win percentage. Teammate junior Ryan Griffiths (Fair Lawn, N.J.) won 10 of his 15 bouts, placing third overall and earning a .667 win percentage.
Senior Sebastiano Bicego (Vicenza, Italy) and freshman Arwen Borowiak (Tauberbischofsheim, Germany) fenced respectably for the men's foil squad. Bicego won nine of his 15 duals, finishing ninth overall with a .600 win percentage. Borowiak won eight of his 15 duals in his first NCAA competition, earning a .533 win percentage and a fourteenth overall finish.
The men's saber squad saw strong performances from both senior men's captain Inti Farfan-Bayerl (Morrison, Colo.) and sophomore Clement Perrier (Allauch, France). Farfan-Bayerl finished sixteenth overall, winning seven of his 15 bouts and earning a .467 win percentage. Perrier won 13 of his 15 duals for a .867 win percentage, finishing second overall.
The Penn State men's fencers will resume competition tomorrow morning when Rounds Four and Five begin at 9 a.m. Following Rounds Four and Five, the top four qualifiers from each weapon will compete in their respective Semifinals beginning at 1 p.m. Fans can livestream Rounds Four and Five using this link, as well as the Semifinal and Final competitions on ESPN 3.
Fans can keep up with Penn State Fencing at GoPSUsports.com. Follow the team on Facebook at Penn State Fencing, on Twitter @pennstateFEN, and on Instagram @pennstatefen.
