CLEVELAND, OH (January 21, 2017) – The Vassar College men's fencing team opened its 2017 calendar season on Saturday, traveling to the Cleveland State Duals for action on the road. The Brewers would fare well though at CSU, breezing past its six opponents in going 6-0 on the afternoon.

Vassar started the day with an 18-9 win over the host Vikings of Cleveland State University, followed by a 21-6 victory over Detroit-Mercy. VC continued the day with a 20-7 win against McKendree University, and followed that with a 21-6 defeat of Case Western Reserve University. In round five, VC took down the University of Michigan 17-10, and then knocked off the hosts one more time in the final round 19-8.

In the opening round of action, the sabre and foil teams shined, as the sabre team went 8-1 thanks to a 3-0 record from junior Eli Polston. The foil team saw Noe Berger go 3-0, while Tom Racek and Jack Holmes each went 2-0. The epee team saw senior Ry Farley and Jonathan Alperstein go 2-1, earning the 5-4 decision.

In the second round, VC saw Racek and Holmes win all three of their bouts in foil, while Alperstein and Daniel Swerzenski each chalked up a 3-0 mark. In sabre, the Titans tested the Brewers, but VC was able to earn a 5-4 win in the weapon thanks to a 3-0 mark from Polston.

Against McKendree, Vassar saw Graeme Mills post thee victories in sabre, while George Whiteside returned from his trip abroad the first semester to pick up two wins in epee. In the fourth round with Case Western, Holmes led the foil crew with three wins, while Whiteside paced the epee squad with a 3-0 mark. The sabre team was dominant once again, going 8-1 behind the efforts of Mills and Polston and their perfect 3-0 mark.

The fifth round was the toughest task for the Brewers, topping the University of Michigan thanks to some great fencing from the foil team. The Wolverines opened with a 6-3 lead in sabre, and extended the advantage after starting epee fencing with two wins. VC battled back, as epee rallied to take the weapon 6-3 thanks to 2-1 marks from Farley, Swerzenski and Alperstein. The foil team was the difference for Vassar though, as Berger and Racek were each 3-0 with Holmes going 2-1.

In the final round, Vassar and CSU were nip and tuck all match, but another clutch performance by the foil group was the difference. Farley was 2-1 in epee, but the Vikings earned the squad with a 5-4 score. VC's sabre team saw Polston go 3-1, while Eric Lee and Mills were each 2-1. In foil, Racek was 3-0 and Berger and Holmes each earned two wins. Sophomore Michael Skolnick also picked up a thrilling 5-4 win in foil.

With the six victories, Vassar moved to 22-4 on the season in dual meets, which is just three wins short of tying the single-season record for victories set last season. Vassar has 12 more dual meets this season, starting with next Saturday afternoon in the first day of action in Northeast Fencing Conference. VC will battle Brandeis University, Boston College, host Brown University and Tufts University in Providence, RI.