The NCAA News - News and Features

The NCAA News -- March 29, 1999

Penn State racks up unprecedented fifth straight fencing title

Penn State captured its fifth consecutive National Collegiate Men's and Women's Fencing Championships title March 18-22 at Brandeis University.

The Nittany Lions, who scored 171 points, became the first team in NCAA fencing history to win five straight championships. This victory is Penn State's seventh since the men's and women's championships were combined in 1990.

Although Penn State did not have any individual titles to take home with its team trophy, two Nittany Lions did place second. Senior Thomas Peng lost in the title bout of the men's epee championship and freshman Stephanie Eim was the runner-up in women's epee.

Notre Dame took a second-place finish in the team championship for the fourth straight year with 139 points. Stanford moved into a third-place finish with 136 points after earning two individual titles in the women's events.

Cardinal junior Felicia Zimmerman, last year's women's foil champion, became the first woman fencer in the history of the combined championship to win a title in two different weapons. Zimmerman captured this year's women's epee title by defeating Penn State's Eim, 8-7, in the final.

Zimmerman advanced to the title round by defeating St. John's (New York) senior Nicole Dygert, 15-9, in the semifinals. Eim advanced to the championship by defeating teammate Charlotte Walker, the defending epee champion, 15-9. Walker defeated Dygert, 15-11, to take third-place honors.

Stanford junior Monique DeBruin won the women's foil crown by defeating Columbia-Barnard sophomore Erinn Smart, 15-7. Smart's second-place finish was her second in two years.

DeBruin, a native of Portland, Oregon, advanced to the title bout by defeating Yelena Kalkina of Ohio St., 15-5, in the semifinals. Smart made her way into the championship round by defeating teammate Susan Jennings, 15-10. Kalkina earned a third-place finish by defeating Jennings, 15-11.

St. John's (New York) junior Keeth Smart, the 1997 men's sabre champion, earned his second men's sabre championship by defeating Notre Dame's Gabor Szelle, 15-4, in the finals. Smart advanced to the championship bout by defeating sophomore Michael Golia of Pennsylvania, 15-7, in the semifinals. Szelle advanced by beating Patrick Durkan of Columbia, 15-5. Durkan placed third for the second straight year by defeating Golia, 15-13.

Stanford freshman Felix Reichling made his rookie season memorable by earning the men's foil title in defeating Yale's Peter Devine, 15-11.

Alex Roytblat, a St. John's (New York) sophomore, won the men's epee crown by defeating Penn State's Peng, 15-11. Roytblat, who placed third in last year's championships, advanced to the finals by beating Penn State freshman Daniel Landgren, 15-9.

National Collegiate men's and women's fencing

TEAM RESULTS

1. Penn St., 171; 2. Notre Dame, 139; 3. Stanford, 136; 4. Princeton, 118; 5. St. John's (N.Y.), 117; 6. Columbia-Barnard, 116; 7. Pennsylvania, 74; 8. Yale, 72; 9. Wayne St. (Mich.), 49; 10. Ohio St., 46.

11. New York U., 41; 12. Brandeis, 39; 13. (tie) Duke and Rutgers, 33; 15. Temple, 32; 16. Brown, 29; 17. Cleveland St., 28; 18. MIT, 21; 19. (tie) Lawrence and Northwestern, 14.

21. (tie) Boston College and Harvard, 13; 23. UC San Diego, 9; 24. (tie) Air Force and Cal St. Fullerton, 8; 26. North Carolina, 4; 27. Johns Hopkins, 2; 28. Tufts, 1.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

Men's foil

Semifinals: Felix Reichling, Stanford, def. Jon Tiomkin, St. John's (N.Y.); Peter Devine, Yale, def. David Lidow, Penn St.

Third place: Tiomkin def. Lidow, 15-13.

Championship: Reichling def. Devine, 15-11.

Round-robin standings: 1. Felix Reichling, Stanford, 21-2; 2. Peter Devine, Yale, 18-5; 3. Jon Tiomkin, St. John's (N.Y.), 19-4; 4. David Lidow, Penn St., 21-2; 5. Jed Dupree, Columbia, 18-5; 6. Gang Lu, Penn St., 18-5; 7. Rafi Bruckner, Columbia, 17-6; 8. Tim Chang, Stanford, 16-7; 9. Alex Nivelle, Princeton, 13-10; 10. Martin Koren, Cleveland St., 13-10.

11. Davis Merritt, St. John's (N.Y.), 13-10; 12. Alex Nazarov, New York U., 11-12; 13. Dustin Reagan, Princeton, 11-12; 14. Chas Hayes, Notre Dame, 11-12: 15. Robert Manchen, Duke, 10-13; 16. Stephane Auriol, Notre Dame, 10-13; 17. David Huynh, Wayne St. (Mich.), 7-16; 18. Jeff Peyton, Lawrence, 5-18; 19. Steven Townley, Yale, 5-18; 20. Ariel Reyes, Cal St. Fullerton, 5-18.

21. David Bright, Duke, 4-19; 22. Brian Sirlin, Brandeis, 4-19; 23. Gerhard Guevarra, North Carolina, 4-19; 24. Kevin Little, Johns Hopkins, 2-21.

Men's epee

Semifinals: Alex Roytblat, St. John's (N.Y.), def. Daniel Landgren, Penn St.; Thomas Peng, Penn St., def. Doron Levit, St. John's (N.Y.).

Third place: Levit def. Landgren, 15-6.

Championship: Roytblat def. Peng, 15-11.

Round-robin standings: 1. Alex Roytblat, St. John's (N.Y.), 20-3; 2. Thomas Peng, Penn St., 18-5; 3. Doron Levit, St. John's (N.Y.), 18-5; 4. Daniel Landgren, Penn St., 17-6; 5. Jason Burrell, Princeton, 16-7; 6. Charles Hamann, Pennsylvania, 15-8; 7. Yevgeni, Niyzov, Rutgers, 14-9; 8. Brian Casas, Notre Dame, 14-9; 9. Marco Acerra, Princeton, 14-9; 10. Eric Tribbett, Stanford, 13-10.

11. Matthew Rosen, Columbia, 13-10; 12. Scott Eriksen, Pennsylvania, 13-10; 13. Richard Hong, Stanford, 12-11; 14. James Gaither, Notre Dame, 11-12; 15. Ben Hardt, Brown, 10-13; 16. Elliott Chorn, Duke, 10-13; 17. Boris Moyston, Brandeis, 9-14; 18. Mark Dembitz, Brown, 9-14; 19. Adam Lake, Lawrence, 9-14; 20. Abe Berman, New York U., 7-16.

21. Jeff Carlino, Ohio St., 5-18; 22. Aaron Waxler, Brandeis, 4-19; 23. Jesse Carlson, Cal St. Fullerton, 3-20; 24. Matt Duplessie, MIT, 2-21.

Men's sabre

Semifinals: Keeth Smart, St. John's (N.Y.), def. Michael Golia, Pennsylvania; Gabor Szelle, Notre Dame, def. Patrick Durkan, Columbia.

Third place: Durkan def. Golia, 15-13.

Championship: Smart def. Szelle, 15-4.

Round-robin standings: 1. Keeth Smart, St. John's (N.Y.), 22-1; 2. Gabor Szelle, Notre Dame, 20-3; 3. Patrick Durkan, Columbia, 19-4; 4. Michael Golia, Pennsylvania, 18-5; 5. Jakub Krochmalski, Wayne St. (Mich.), 16-7; 6. Tim Morehouse, Brandeis, 15-8; 7. Aaron Stuewe, Penn St., 15-8; 8. Maxim Pekarev, Princeton, 15-8; 9. Paolo Roselli, Cleveland St., 15-8; 10. Luke Mountain, Boston College, 13-10.

11. Luke LaValle, Notre Dame, 12-11; 12. Michael Takagi, Penn St., 12-11; 13. Terry Kim, Princeton, 12-11; 14. Joseph Zampieri, Rutgers, 11-12; 15. Ted Padgitt, UC San Diego, 9-14: 16. Andrew Mahen, Duke, 9-14; 17. Mike Topper, Brandeis, 7-16; 18. Aaron Goldsmid, Columbia, 7-16; 19. Brian Bower, MIT, 7-16; 20. Mitsu Sudo, Yale, 6-17.

21. Tom Hergenhan, St. John's (N.Y.), 6-17; 22. Jeffrey Allen, Pennsylvania, 5-18; 23. David LaValle, Stanford, 4-19; 24. Patrick May, New York U., 1-22.

Women's foil

Semifinals: Monique DeBruin, Stanford, def. Yelena Kalkina, Ohio St.; Erinn Smart, Columbia-Barnard, def. Susan Jennings, Columbia-Barnard.

Third place: Kalkina def. Jennings, 15-11.

Championship: DeBruin def. Smart, 15-7.

Round-robin standings: 1. Monique DeBruin, Stanford, 22-1; 2. Erinn Smart, Columbia-Barnard, 21-2; 3. Yelena Kalkina, Ohio St., 19-4; 4. Susan Jennings, Columbia-Barnard, 21-2; 5. Sara Walsh, Notre Dame, 19-4; 6. Christiana Klemp, Penn St., 18-5; 7. Carla Esteva, Penn St., 16-7; 8. Agata Wysiadecka, Wayne St. (Mich.), 13-10; 9. Katie Zuckerman, Yale, 13-10; 10. Myriah Brown, Notre Dame, 13-10.

11. Ute Breden, Stanford, 12-11; 12. Fane Groes, Ohio St., 12-11; 13. Hannah Appel, Yale, 11-12; 14. Gina De Ieso, Temple, 11-12; 15. Lisa Leslie, Princeton, 10-13; 16. Margo Katz, Pennsylvania, 9-14; 17. Emily De Villa, New York U., 8-15; 18. Kristen Dorf, Northwestern, 7-16; 19. Emily Katz, Harvard, 7-16; 20. Jaime Beecher, Temple, 5-18.

21. Jagna Gromulska, Pennsylvania, 3-20; 22. Marisa Mustilli, St. John's (N.Y.), 3-20; 23. Aimee Wiltz, MIT, 2-21; 24. Ann Marie Cholankeril, Tufts, 1-22.

Women's epee

Semifinals: Felicia Zimmerman, Stanford, def. Nicole Dygert, St. John's (N.Y.); Stephanie Eim, Penn St., def. Charlotte Walker, Penn St.

Third place: Walker def. Dygert, 15-11.

Championship: Zimmerman def. Eim, 8-7.

Round-robin standings: 1. Felicia Zimmerman, Stanford, 21-2; 2. Stephanie Eim, Penn St., 19-4; 3. Charlotte Walker, Penn St., 17-6; 4. Nicole Dygert, St. John's (N.Y.), 16-7; 5. Nicole Mustilli, Notre Dame, 15-8; 6. Jessica Lisagor, Stanford, 15-8; 7. Caitlin Rich, Princeton, 15-8; 8. Magda Krol, Notre Dame, 14-9; 9. Marta Sciubisz, Wayne St. (Mich.), 13-10; 10. Whitney Anderson, Yale, 12-11.

11. Maya Lawrence, Princeton, 12-11; 12. Kari Coley, Pennsylvania, 11-12; 13. Julia Korony, Temple, 11-12; 14. Nora Szasz, MIT, 10-13; 15. Toya Holland, Ohio St., 10-13; 16. Margaret Kosmala, Brown, 10-13; 17. Christina Beckert, New York U., 9-14; 18. Jennifer Bosch, Rutgers, 8-15; 19. Heidi Triggs, Air Force, 8-15; 20. Meghan Gaseor, Northwestern, 7-16.

21. Nush Powell, Yale, 7-16; 22. Elizabeth Aranow, Harvard, 6-17; 23. Siobhan Cully, New York U., 5-18; 24. Marta Knight, Temple, 5-18.