Jan. 24, 2011
PHILADELPHIA, PA - The Johns Hopkins men's fencing team returned to action at the Philadelphia Invitational Saturday after a two-month break. Hopkins defeated Drew (15-12) and NJIT (22-5) before falling to North Carolina (19-8), Haverford (18-9) and Sacred Heart (18-9). Sophomore Nicolas Barbera paced the Blue Jays on the day with 12 wins in 15 bouts.
Hopkins opened the day with a tight 15-12 win over Drew as the Blue Jays won the Sabre (8-1) and the Epee (6-3) to take the team win. In the Sabre, it was Barbera and senior Mike Fellows leading the way as the pair combined to go 6-0, while senior Max Wieder finished 2-1. In the Foil, freshman Evan Stafford picked up the lone win for the Blue Jays. And in the Epee, sophomore Sid Menon and freshmen Richard Bram and Jay DeYoung each went 2-1 against the Rangers.
In their next bout, Hopkins dominated NJIT to the tune of a 22-5 win. Hopkins cruised to 7-2 wins in the Sabre and Foil before winning 8-1 in the Epee. Barbera again went 3-0 to lead Hopkins in the Sabre, while Fellows went 2-0. Stafford and sophomore Ben Wasser each went 3-0 in the Foil, while senior Nick Krywopusk and Bram each went 3-0 in the Foil.
Hopkins then faced a tough North Carolina squad as the Tar Heels won all three weapons. Hopkins got a win each from Barbera and Menon in the Sabre to fall 7-2. In the Foil, Stafford won two of his three bouts for the Blue Jays in a 7-2 loss. The Epee was a battle between the two with the Tar Heels just edging the Blue Jays, 5-4. Krywopusk paced Hopkins with a pair of wins.
Against Haverford, Hopkins dropped decisions in the Saber (6-3) and the Foil (8-1) but rebounded to win the Epee (5-4). Barbera again led the way for Hopkins with a pair of wins in the Sabre, while Stafford had the lone win the Foil. DeYong and Krywopusk each won a pair of bouts, with Krywopusk picking up the fifth and deciding win for JHU.
And in the final bout of the day, Hopkins dropped a tough one to Sacred Heart. The Blue Jays came out strong, winning the Sabre, but the Pioneers rallied to win the Foil and Epee by 8-1 scores. Barbera went unbeaten in his three bouts in the Sabre and Fellows and Menon each went 2-1 as the Blue Jays took the win, 7-2. Wasser won the lone bout in the Foil, while Krywopusk picked up the Epee win.
Hopkins returns to action on Saturday, January 29 at the Penn State Invitational.
