men's foil captain Ariel DeSmet is one of four former NCAA combatants for the Irish men's team competing Saturday.

Irish Host NCAA Midwest Regional At Castellan Family Fencing Center This Weekend

March 8, 2013

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame fencing team will host the 2013 NCAA Midwest Regional this weekend at the Castellan Family Fencing Center. All three weapon classes in the women’s division will be contested on Saturday, while the men’s competitors will take to the strip Sunday.

Fencers from six different varsity squads will make the trek to the NCAA Midwest Regional. All teams represented are members of the Midwest Fencing Conference.

Cleveland State, Detroit, Lawrence and Wayne State will compete with against ranked foes Northwestern, Ohio State and Notre Dame to attempt to qualify the maximum number of entries into the NCAA Championships Feb. 21-24 in San Antonio, Texas.

Returning to defend NCAA regional championship titles are women’s epeeist Courtney Dumas (Northwestern), women’s foilist Mona Shaito (Ohio State), men’s foilist Zain Shaito (Ohio State) and men’s sabrist Max Stearns (Ohio State).

The last three NCAA men’s foil champions, Notre Dame’s Gerek Meinhardt (2010) and Ariel DeSmet (2011), along with Ohio State’s Shaito (2012), will be in action during the men’s foil draw Sunday.

Notre Dame’s 2012 Olympic Games participants, Meinhardt, Lee Kiefer and Courtney Hurley, are each returning to an NCAA field after a successful month overseas in international events. Meinhardt and Kiefer each took part in the Foil World Cup (March 2-3) in St. Petersburg, Russia, while Hurley, who earned a bronze medal with Team USA at the London Games, placed seventh at the Leipzig Epee World Cup in Germany (Feb. 9).

Two additional Olympic performers, siblings Zain and Mona Shaito, represented Lebanon in 2012. Along with Mona’s twin sister, Mai, the Shaito’s are each attempting to repeat as NCAA champions.

Live results from the NCAA Midwest Regional will be available . For full results at the conclusion of bouting each day, visit the Championship Central Page.

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