POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – The Vassar women's fencing team placed fourthat the EWFC Championships at Walker Field House on Sunday. John Hopkins won the team title, while Stevens placed second. The Blue Jays also claimed the epee and foil titles, and Stevens grabbed the saber title. The Brewers went 6-3 on the day.
Vassar cruised past Yeshiva 26-1 in the first round, with both the foil and epee squads sweeping 9-0. The saber group had a strong outing, going 8-1. At foil, senior Zoe Tolbert (Olympia, WA) gave only one touch with a 15-1 advantage to record the 3-0 sweep. Junior Sophie Jones (McLean, VA) and sophomore Hunter Grogan (Lakewood, CO) defeated Yeshiva with 3-0 marks.
At epee, seniors Nona Chen and Rose Parker (Portland, OR) and first-year Nicole Ezell (Morristown, NJ) tallied 3-0 decisions. Junior Elise Poniatowski (West Roxbury, MA) had a close 5-4 second bout win but recorded the 3-0 sweep. First-year Kira Wheeler (New Paltz, NY) tallied a 3-0 round, while Gjoka was also 3-0.
The Brewers had another easy going against CCNY, winning 25-2. Vassar defeated a depleted opponent 9-0, and Tolbert, Tori Lubin (Westport, CT), and Grogan all won 3-0. Chen and Danielle Golden (Chestnut Hill, MA) posted 3-0 marks, while Ezell went 2-1 against the Beavers. Poniatowski and Wheeler posted 3-0 marks at saber, while Daniela Mujica (Weston, FL) went 2-1.
In the third round, Vassar faced off against Drew and pulled off a close 16-11 victory. Foil managed a decisive 8-1 decision over the Rangers, while epee pulled off the 6-3 win. The Drew ranger squad downed Vassar 2-7. Tolbert brought her winning streak to nine straight after sweeping through 3-0. Grogan also went 3-0, while Lubin won her first and third bouts to go 2-1. Barnes led the epee group at 3-0, while Golden was 2-1. Parker added one victory. Saber struggled against the Rangers. After dropping the first bout 1-5, Wheeler bounced back to win 5-2 and 5-2 the next two fights.
John Hopkins tripped Vassar up 9-18 in the fourth round after sweeping the saber and recording a 3-6 mark at foil. The Brewers performed well at epee, winning 6-3. Both Barnes and Naomi Hirsch (Melrose Park, PA) went 2-1 against John Hopkins, while Parker had one win. Lubin, Grogan, and Tolbert had one bout victory against the Blue Jays at foil.
The Brewers bounced back with a 20-7 win over Haverford in the following round. All three weapon groups won, with epee going 9-0, foil winning 6-3, and saber slipping by 5-4. In their first round of the day, first-year Addy Xie (Falmouth, MA) went 3-0 against the Fords. Hirsch and Golden also picked up 3-0 marks. Lubin led the foil squad with a 3-0 sweep, while Grogan was 2-1. Tolbert subbed in and won 5-2 in the third bout. Poniatowski won 5-2 and then 5-4 before dropping the third match. Wheeler won in the second and third fights, while Mujica added a win.
It was a tight round with the Ducks of Stevens in the sixth. Despite winning 6-3 in both the foil and epee, the Ducks slipped by 13-14 due to taking saber 1-8. Tolbert kept winning at foil and was 3-0 over the Ducks, while Lubin went 2-1. Grogan picked up a victory in the third bout. Xie had a firm 3-0 performance, while Barnes tallied the 2-1 decision. Wheeler earned the sole win at the saber.
Vassar defeated Denison 17-10 in the seventh round behind an 8-1 epee result and a 7-2 foil mark. Saber lost 2-7. Parker and Hirsh went 3-0 at epee, while Ezell tacked on two wins. Due to a limited Denison foil team, Tolbert and Grogan both went 3-0, with Ayane Garrison (Maplewood, NJ) earning one victory. Wheeler and Kae Czesak (Fishkill, NY) won at the saber.
The Brewers picked up an 18-9 victory over Hunter in the next round. With only one epee fencer from Hunter, Vassar won 8-1. The foil and saber squads both went 5-4. Grogan swept the opponents 3-0, while Wu and Jones had a win. Wheeler then went undefeated at 3-0 in saber.
Vassar fell 8-19 to Wellesley in the final round. Foil won 5-4, with Tolbert and Grogan managing two victories each. Epee fell 3-6, while the saber squad was swept 0-9.
In the individual tournament, Haverford's Golda Glasser won the title of foil fencer of the year, while Tolbert received second-team all-conference honors at fifth place. Lubin was also on the second team with a seventh-place finish. The epee competition saw Stevens' Claire McNeil as fencer of the year, while Xie and Golden were seventh and eighth, respectively, to receive second-team recognition. Jenny Song from John Hopkins was the top saber fencer. Wheeler tied for third place to earn a first-team medal, and Poniatowski placed ninth to make the second team.
Vassar next competes at the NEIFC Championships in Waltham, MA on Feb. 26.
