MADISON, N.J. – The Vassar Men's Fencing team opened the 2022-23 campaign on Sunday at the Drew Invitational in Madison, NJ. The Brewers went 4-2 on the day after wins over Drew (Green), Clemson, Army and Yeshiva. Freshman Brian Li (Tacoma, WA) went 13-2 at epee while classmate Oliver Berger (Santa Monica, CA) went 13-2 at sabre.
Each weapon group posted a winning record on the day, with Sabre leading the way at 39-15. Epee went 37-17, while foil was 31-23. Vassar won its first two rounds by defeating Army (20-7) and Clemson (24-3). The Brewers dropped a tight 13-14 decision in round three to Stevens before defeating Yeshiva (26-1) and Drew (Green) (18-9). Vassar dropped its final round to NJIT (6-21).
In the first round against Army, the epee squad went 5-4, with Li going undefeated at 3-0. Wins from sophomore Eli Weise (Seattle, WA) and senior Jack Plumer (Bel Air, MD) gave Vassar the edge in epee. Then in foil, freshman Federico La Rosa's (Palo Alto, CA) 3-0 performance and a 2-0 marks by freshman Isaiah Kim (Tustin, CA) and sophomore Brady Traugot (New York, NY) helped Vassar pull off the win. The Vassar sabre fencers went 8-1 after 3-0 marks from Berger and freshman Fernando Panepinto Hattori (Cambridge, MA).
In the second round against Clemson, Li and Plumer both went undefeated at 3-0, while Weise and senior Spencer Emerson (Willow Grove, PA) each added a win for an 8-1 mark. Kim, LaRosa and Traugot each went 2-0 at foil to earn a 7-2 victory while Sabre won 9-0 behind 3-0 performances from Berger, Panepinto Hattori and sophomore Noah Rudnet (Oyster Bay, NY).
The Brewers took a tight 13-14 loss in the third round against Stevens as epee took a 5-4 victory as Li remained undefeated with a 3-0 mark with Weise and Plumer adding wins. Foil took a tough 4-5 loss as LaRosa led the way with two victories. Sabre also fell 4-5 with Berger picking up two wins for the Brewers.
Vassar cruised past a light Yeshiva squad and won epee (9-0), foil (9-0), and sabre (8-1). The trio of Emerson, Plumer, and Weise all went 3-0 against the Maccabees at epee. In foil, LaRosa, Traugot, Kim and freshman Ulysses Bergel (Wyckoff, NJ) combined for the nine wins. Rudnet and Panepinto Hattori each went 3-0 at sabre for the Brewers while sophomore Sean Fisher (Winnebago, IL) posted two victories.
In the fifth round against the Drew (Green) squad, Vassar took home a 8-1 victory at epee as Plumer and Li each went 3-0 once again while Weise earned two victories. The foil squad lost 3-6 while LaRosa posted two wins but Sabre helped Vassar earn the victory as Berger went 3-0 and Rudnet and Panepinto Hattori each earned two victories.
In the final round against NJIT, the Brewers lost 6-21 as epee dropped a 2-7 decision as Li lost his only two bouts of the day. Foil lost 1-8 as LaRosa earned the only win as Sabre fell 3-6 and Berger earned two more victories for the Brewers.
Next weekend, Vassar is back in action for the NEIFC Big One Invitational held at Smith College on Saturday morning.
