Feb. 7, 1997

Men’s Fencing Goes Undefeated

DURHAM, N.C. — The Notre Dame men’s fencing team went undefeated today in five dual meets at Duke. The Irish beat Columbia 18-9, North Carolina 23-4, Air Force 21-6, Duke 16-11, and Stanford 16-11.

The Irishe were led by sophomore sabreman Luke LaValle (New York, NY) (13-0), senior foilest Jeremy Siek (Watertown, MA) (22-1), and junior epeeist Carl Jackson (Ringocs, NJ) (11-4).

The best was saved for last as the Irish defeated a strong Stanford squad in an intensely contested match. The Irish had the cushion of a 9-0 result in sabre, with senior John Scherpereel (Murrysville, PA) contributing a key win after being down 3-0. “John fenced with intensity, focus and heart,” said Irish head coach Yves Auriol.

The Irish lost 3-6 in epee and 4-5 in foil, but the squads contributed several key bouts to the victory. In Jackson’s bout against 1995 NCAA foil champion Sean McClain (who is fencing epee this year due to the strength of Stanford’s foil team), Jackson took a 2-1 lead with two seconds left in the bout. Jackson then played defense to run out the clock. “CJ had a big win there,” said Auriol. “Brian Stone (Hackettstown, NJ) fenced McLain tough too, even though he lost. I was proud of the epee team’s effort.”

Siek went 2-1 against the Cardinal, while Charles Hayes (South Bend, IN) and John Tejada (Brooklyn, NY) each added a victory.

“The men were ready for the match,” Auriol concluded. “They had a great spirit and intensity. It was great win over a great Stanford team.”

On Saturday, the Irish women take the strip against the same five squads. “This will be just as important a meet for our women as it was for our men.” said Auriol. “Stanford will be a big challenge. We will be ready”