CLEVELAND — The University of Notre Dame fencing program remains in third place after three days of competition at the 2019 National Collegiate Fencing championships, with a pair of outstanding outings from senior epeeist Amanda Sirico and freshman foilist Amita Berthier highlighting the day.
The Irish point total came to 135 after Saturday’s three rounds of women’s fencing at Cleveland State’s Wolstein Center, with Columbia leading at 143, followed by Penn State with 139. The Irish picked up four points on first place after trailing by 12 after Friday.
Sirico and Berthier occupy the No. 1 and No. 2 spots in their respective standings, with Sirico tallying 12 wins and Berthier adding 13.
How It Happened
Foil
The women’s foil duo is squarely in the top eight after three rounds, with freshman Amita Berthier in second place with a 13-2 record and Sabrina Massialas is currently in seventh with a tally of 10-5. After dropping two bouts in the first round, including to Massialas, Berthier went undefeated in the day’s final two pools to pull into second place.
Epee
Senior Amanda Sirico sits atop the epee standings after three rounds, going 12-3 on the day with an indicator of +18. In four key bouts between Columbia and Harvard, she went 3-1 to help the Irish close the gap on the first-place Lions and distance themselves from the Crimson. Squadmate and first-time NCAA competitor Miriam Grady went 7-8 on the day and sits in 14th place heading into day two.
Sabre
Freshman Kara Linder climbed to 11th place with an 8-7 mark after finishing the first round in 16th, while senior Tara Hassett is just behind with a 7-8 record in 14th place.
Standings
National Collegiate Fencing Championships
March 21-24, 2019
Wolstein Center | Cleveland State
Cleveland, Ohio
Women’s Competition (March 23-24)
Epee (Rounds 1-3)
1. Amanda Sirico, 12-3 (+18)
14. Miriam Grady, 7-8 (+3)
Foil (Rounds 1-3)
2. Amita Berthier, 13-2 (+31)
7. Sabrina Massialas, 10-5 (+19)
Sabre (Rounds 1-3)
11. Kara Linder, 8-7 (+10)
14. Tara Hassett, 7-8 (+3)
Men’s Competition (March 21-22)
Epee
11. Ariel Simmons, 12-11 (+4)
21. Stephen Ewart, 9-14 (-15)
Foil
1. Nick Itkin 19-4 (+57)*
2. Axel Kiefer 19-4 (+47)*
Sabre
15. Alessandro Contreras 10-13 (-16)
20. Arsenii Panteleev 9-14 (-30)
* First Team All-American
Team Standings
1. Columbia 143
2. Penn State 139
3. Notre Dame 135
4. Harvard 118
5. Ohio State 108
Up Next
Action at the championships will conclude Sunday with the final two rounds of competition beginning at 9 a.m. ET for all weapons. The direct elimination semifinal and final rounds will begin at 1 p.m. ET and will be contested in the order of epee, foil and sabre. Live scoring will be available during the round robins, while the semifinals and finals will be broadcast on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app. For up-to-date information on the Irish, follow the team on Twitter @NDFencing.
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