Fencing invitational draws top talent
With over 300 individuals competing, the battle for a top-eight medal was very tough Saturday at the Stevenson Fencing Invitational.
And while there were no area individuals crowned champions in any of the six total men's and women's individual events, there were still some outstanding performances by local fencers in the powerful meet.
Stevenson sophomore Sally Park fell behind 4-1 in her semifinal match against University of Chicago Laboratory High School, but Park was able to bounce back strong and build a 12-10 advantage late in the bout.
But when all was said and done, Park came up on the short end of a 15-13 score and she had to settle for a third-place tie in the women's foil competition. Jessica Lamb placed seventh in foil for the Patriots.
“Fencing is mental and physical and I tried my best, but I was really nervous,” said Park. “I'm satisfied I guess, but I could have done better and I know what to practice for in the future.”
In other women's events, Maine West junior Cara Franke also earned a third-place tie in the saber competition after losing 15-6 to eventual A-rated champion Desirae Major of Culver Military Academy (Indiana) in the semifinals.
“My goal is usually to make top eight or top four so I have had a good start to the season so far,” Franke said. “It gets harder as you go through the tournament because all of the challenging bouts are in the end.”
Stevenson senior Cynthia Wang took sixth place in women's saber to earn a medal while teammate Jessica Frayman just missed a medal in saber after taking ninth place. Cindy Lapradd of Crimson Blades (Libertyville) placed 11th in saber followed by Stevenson's Morgan Kaplan in 13th and Maine West's Katie Meyers in 14th.
“Sally Park did very well, she's got good reaction time, she is very aggressive, and she has a nice style,” said Stevenson coach Fernando Delgado. “Cynthia Wang did very well and sixth place was very good for only the second week of the season.”
In women's epee, Stevenson's Nicole Crosby was the top area finisher in 12th place followed by Maine West teammates Jean Manianglung (16th) and Sam VanWees (18th).
In the men's tournament, Maine West was very impressive in epee with senior Ben Haliotis placing second, and junior teammate Carl Lyday tying for third.
The Warriors' squad also got a fifth-place finish from senior captain Daniel Brissette in epee while junior teammate Spencer Armstrong also earned a medal in seventh. Stevenson's Ryan McDonough just missed a medal in epee in ninth.
“It's the best I've ever done, and I'm very happy with that,” said Haliotis. “It was just a good day and I thought I was going to get like eighth because it's a tough tournament.”
Maine West senior Justin Suevel was also very impressive Saturday as he tied for third in saber for the Warriors. Stevenson's Markus Hasenberg placed 15th in saber.
“We have a very strong team this year in that particular event (epee) and we have two seniors and two juniors who are really good,” said Maine West coach Rachel Dean. “The better the competition that you fence, the better you will get and we have these epee boys who are working hard and they are building each other up.”
In men's foil, Stevenson had two medalists with Ben Rosenberg placing sixth, and John Munson placing seventh. The Patriots' Vincent Fiorentini also just missed a medal in foil with a ninth-place finish. Henry Fiorentinis tied for 15th in foil for the Pats.