Jan. 30, 2009
BALTIMORE, MD - The Johns Hopkins men's fencing team improved to 17-6 on the season with a 6-2 record over the weekend. Hopkins opened on Saturday with two tough matches against #1 Penn State and #3 Princeton before returning home for six dual meets on Sunday. JHU picked up wins over Rutgers, Drew, Lafayette, Hunter, Maryland and St. John's (MD).
The Blue Jays dropped a tough 22-5 decision to the #1 Nittany Lions on Saturday. Hopkins then took on host #3 Princeton and fell 16-11. The highlight of the match came in the Sabre, which the Blue Jays won 5-4 behind a 3-0 performance from sophomore Max Wieder (Westfield, NJ/Westfield).
Hopkins opened Sunday with a 19-8 win over Rutgers. The Blue Jays were dominant in the Epee (7-2) and Foil (7-2) in winning the match. Sophomore Thomas Ronan (New Haven, CT/Pinkerton Academy (NH)) led the way in the Epee, winning all three of his bouts. While in the Foil, senior David Ferguson (New York, NY/Stuyvesant) also won all three of his bouts.
Next up was Drew, which Hopkins beat 18-9 with solid performances in the Sabre (6-3) and the Epee (7-2). Wieder paced the Blue Jays in the Sabre, going undefeated at 3-0. Ronan once again led the Blue Jays in the Epee with a 3-0 slate. In a tough 5-4 win in the Foil, Ferguson picked up the crucial fifth point in the final bout for Hopkins.
The Blue Jays then rolled to a 23-4 win over the Leopards of Lafayette. Hopkins dominated in the Sabre (9-0) and the Foil (9-0) to claim the match. Wieder, senior David Hill (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) and sophomore Michael Fellows (Beverly, MA/St. John's Prep) each went 3-0 in the Sabre. While in the Foil, Ferguson and seniors Ben Dorfman (Lebanon, NJ/North Hunterdon) and Jimmy Einsiedler (Falmouth, ME/Waynflete School) each went 3-0.
Hopkins turned in another dominating performance against Hunter, winning 21-6. The Blue Jays swept all nine bouts in the Sabre to highlight the match. Hopkins won a close one in the Foil, edging Hunter 5-4, with Dorfman clinching the match in the final bout.
Wieder, Fellows and Hill each won all three of their bouts in the Sabre as Hopkins defeated Maryland 21-6. While in the Foil, Einsiedler (3-0) and Fergurson (2-0) led the Blue Jays to a 7-2 record. Hopkins wrapped up the weekend with a 24-3 win over St. John's (MD). The Blue Jays swept the Sabre (9-0) and the Epee (9-0) en route to the win.
Wieder led the Blue Jays on the weekend with a 20-4 record and improves to 69-26 on the season. He is now tied for 37th all-time in JHU history in career wins (159) and 15th among Sabrists. Fellows finished at 18-6 and is now 40-23, while Hill went 15-9 to improve to 40-38 on the season.
In the Epee, junior Harry Oppenheim (Weston, FL/University School of NSU), sophomore Nick Krywopusk (Richboro, PA/Princeton Day School (NJ)) and Ronan all finished with 14 wins each. Oppenheim boasts a 52-18 record, while Krywopusk is 41-23 and Ronan is now 36-19. Oppeheim now credits 135 wins in his career to rank 15th in program history among Epeeists.
And in the Foil, Dorfman and Ferguson each won 13 bouts, while Einsiedler won 12. Dorfman is now 36-11 on the season and 229-84 all-time to rank 15th all-time in program history (in all weapons) and tied for seventh among Foilists. Ferguson is now 51-21 on the season and 208-93 all-time, ranking him 22nd all-time and 13th among Foilists.
Hopkins returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 31 and Sunday, Feb. 1 at the Northwestern Duals in Evanston, IL.
