Fencing heads upstate for Ancient Eight championship bouts

This weekend, the men’s and women’s fencing teams will travel to Ithaca, N.Y. for the first part of the Ivy League Championships. The Championships are divided into two parts because of the number of bouts, and the second half will take place next weekend at Penn. The Lions, who were champions in both 2007 and 2008, will look to take back the title after placing second in both the men’s and women’s competitions last year.

This Sunday, the Light Blue will face off against Yale, Cornell, and Brown. Last year, the women defeated all three of these opponents and the men defeated Yale and Brown (Cornell does not have a men’s team).

The women trumped the Bulldogs 21-6, while the men won 17-10. Against the Bears, the women again earned an easy win, 23-4, while the men’s match was a little closer, 18-9. The women defeated the Big Red in a 20-7 decision.

Last year, the women were able to dominate the epee, going 8-1 in their match against Yale and 9-0 in their match against Brown. Then-freshman Neely Brandfield-Harvey went 3-0 in both matches for the Lions. Current junior Martyna Urbanowicz only competed in the Yale match, winning 3-0, and current senior Tess Finkel also swept, going 3-0 in the match against Brown.

The men had similar success in sabre, going 7-2 and 8-1 against Yale and Brown, respectively. Current seniors Alex Rudnicki and Jeff Spear swept both matches that day, going 3-0 against Yale and Brown. Current junior Trevis Joyner split his bouts, winning 2-1 against Brown but falling 2-1 against Yale.

During the first part of the competition last year, both teams lost to the eventual champions, as the women fell to Harvard in a 15-12 nail-biter and the men were handled by Penn, 18-9. The Light Blue will have to wait until next weekend to exact its revenge.

The first part of the Championships will begin at 11 a.m. on Sunday.