Jan. 31, 2010
Evanston, Ill. – The Fighting Irish fencing teams continued to roll on day two of the Northwestern Duals, as the men posted a 4-0 mark and the women turned in a 7-0 record to close out the two-day event. The men are now 22-0 on the season while the women push their record to 24-0 on the year.
Head coach Janusz Bednarksi and his coaching staff not only continued to build momentum by guiding the squad to an 11-0 record on the day, but playing somewhat locally allowed the coaches to showcase the depth of the Irish program as 19 different men’s fencers and 20 women’s fencers had a hand in Sunday’s conquests.
Though some new faces contributed to the Irish successes this past weekend, it was veteran epeeist Kelley Hurley (San Antonio, Texas) who once again led the team as she posted a 16-0 record. It marked her second straight 16-0 performance (32-0 on the weekend), moving her career mark to 186-23. Hurley, the 2008 NCAA champion, is now fourth on the all-time career wins list for female epeeists at Notre Dame.
The second-ranked men downed Johns Hopkins (21-6), Cleveland State (23-4), Wayne State (20-7) and North Carolina (17-10) on day two of the NWU Duals. Dating back to 2008, the men have not lost a match in their last 66 regular-season contests, which is the fourth longest streak in program history.
Notre Dame’s second-ranked women’s team dominated the competition once again, downing the California Institute of Technology (25-2), seventh-ranked Temple (16-11), Lawrence (27-0), Wayne State (19-8), Detroit-Mercy (26-1), Cleveland State (26-1) and sixth-ranked Ohio State (16-11) to close out the 2010 NWU Duals. Dating back to last season, they have now won 48 consecutive regular-season matches, which is the second longest unbeaten stretch in program history.
Men’s Individual Results
Freshman James Kaull (Washington, D.C.) and junior Greg Schoolcraft (San Jose, Calif.) led the epee squad on day two of the NWU Duals. Kaull turned in an 8-1 mark that was highlighted by a 5-3 win over three-time defending NCAA Champion Slava Zingerman of Wayne State. Schoolcraft finished with a 7-3 record that was highlighted by a win over 2008 Penn State Open champion Thomas LeGulliou of North Carolina. Junior Jacob Osborne (Colleyville, Texas) posted a 2-0 record against Johns Hopkins and ended at 3-3 on the day. Junior captain Andrew Seroff (Boulder, Colo./Boulder) added three wins, while Conor Gettings (Lake Forest, Ill.) and Jack Piasao (DuBois, Pa.) each notched a victory.
Foil coach Gia Kvaratskhelia saw a very consistent performance across the board from his foilists. Reggie Bentley (Little Rock, Ark.) led the way with a 6-0 mark that included 3-0 records against North Carolina and Wayne State. Junior captain Zach Schirtz (Rochester, N.Y.) and his classmate Steve Kubik (San Antonio, Texas) had identical 5-1 records. Sophomore Enzo Castellani (Keller, Texas) finished with a 3-2 record on the day, while freshman Grant Hodges (Salina, Kan.) and sophomore Nicholas Crebs each added four wins.
Seven different Irish sabreists notched victories on Sunday, led by Keith Feldman’s (Stony Brook, N.Y.) nine wins. Tony Schlehuber (Carmel, Ind.) and Avery Zuck (Beaverton, Ore.) each went undefeated on the day, with Schlehuber posting a 5-0 record and Zuck a 3-0 mark. Sophomore Marcel Frenkel (San Paulo, Brazil) went 6-3 on the day. Freshman William McGough (Bronxville, N.Y.) posted a 4-1 record that included 2-0 marks versus Johns Hopkins and Cleveland State. Junior Barron Nydam (Rancho Sante Fe, Calif.) and freshman Jason Choy (Basking Ridge, N.J.) each added a win.
Women’s Individual Results
In addition to K. Hurley’s dominating weekend, epee coach Marek Stepien saw Diane Zielinski (Bernardsville, N.J.) turn in a powerful day two performance at the NWU duals as the sophomore was able to record 15 wins against just three losses. Senior Vanessa Rosa (El Paso, Texas) was not far off the pace set by Hurley and Zielinski, as she notched a 12-2 mark on the day. Courtney Hurley (San Antonio, Texas) chipped in with five wins, including two wins in Notre Dame’s 16-11 victory over Ohio State. Sophomore Stephanie Myers (El Paso, Texas) added five wins, while freshman Caroline Dikibo (Houston, Texas) added two wins.
Freshman Phenix Messersmith (El Cerrito, Calif.) led the foil squad with a 10-3 record on the day including 3-0 marks against Lawrence, Detroit and Cleveland State. Sophomore Christina LaBarge (Pasedena, Calif.) posted an impressive 8-0 mark, while Radmilla Sarkisova (Grand rapids, Mich.) went 8-1 on the day- including two wins versus both Temple and Ohio State. Katie Heinzen (Fairfax, Va.) and Hayley Reese (Crestwood, Ky.) each had seven wins, with three of Reese’s seven wins coming against Ohio State. Freshman Grace Hartman (St. Paul, Minn.) chipped in with a 5-4 mark and sophomore Darsie Malynn (Grapevine, Texas) added three victories.
Stalwart Sarah Borrmann (Beaverton, Ore.) and freshman Marta Stepien (South Amboy, N.J.) paced the women’s sabre squad. Borrmann posted an 11-1 record on the day, while Stepien went undefeated at 11-0. Borrmann had an important 3-0 record versus Temple and a 2-1 mark against Ohio State. Stepien added 3-0 marks against Lawrence and Wayne State. Freshman Kathryn Palazzoto (Nutley, N.J.) notched an 8-1 record on the day, including 3-0 marks versus Lawrence and Wayne State. Stepien’s classmate Danielle Guilfoyle (Pittstown, N.J.) also went unbeaten on the day, posting a 6-0 record. Sophomore Beatriz Almeida (Chappagua, N.Y.) posted a 7-1 mark that included three wins versus Wayne State. Junior Eileen Hassett (Beaverton, Ore.) recorded two wins versus Ohio State and finished with five victories on the day, while freshman Abigail Nichols (Concord, Mass.) chipped in with four wins, two of which came versus Temple.
The Irish return to the strip next weekend when they play host to the 2010 Notre Dame Duals. Action inside the Joyce Center will take place on Saturday, Feb. 6 and Sunday, Feb. 7. Admission to the two-day event is free. Check back with UND.com as the ND Duals approach for the best ways in which to follow the Irish at their first home event of the season and a more detailed schedule of events.
Complete Irish Results (Men)#2 Notre Dame def. Johns Hopkins 21-6 (MS 7-2; MF 7-2; ME 7-2)#2 Notre Dame def. Cleveland State 23-4 (MS 9-0; MF 6-3; ME 7-2)#2 Notre Dame def. Wayne State 20-7 (MS 6-3; MF 9-0; ME 5-4)#2 Notre Dame def. North Carolina 17-10 (MS 7-2; MF 5-4; ME 5-4)
Complete Irish Results (Women)#2 Notre Dame def. Cal. Tech 25-2 (WS 7-2; WF 9-0; WE 9-0)#2 Notre Dame def. #7 Temple 16-11 (WS 5-4; WF 3-6; WE 8-1)#2 Notre Dame def. Lawrence 27-0 (WS 9-0; WF 9-0; WE 9-0)#2 Notre Dame def. Wayne State 19-8 (WS 9-0; WF 4-5; WE 6-3)#2 Notre Dame def. Detroit 26-1 (WS 9-0; WF 8-1; WE 9-0)#2 Notre Dame def. Cleveland State 26-1 (WS 9-0; WF 9-0; WE 8-1)#2 Notre Dame def. #6 Ohio State 16-11 (WS 4-5; WF 6-3; WE 6-3)
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