About Fencing
The men's and women's fencing teams closed out their dual-match seasons with impressive 13-6 and 8-5 marks, respectively before heading into the conference championships. Haverford College served as host to both the NIWFA and MACFA championships the weekend of Feb. 26. The men's epee squad captured their second straight title behind a 2nd place individual finish by Dana Sanford and an 8th place finish from Joe Atanasio. The foil and saber squads earned the third place trophy to lift the Rangers to finish third in the overall three-weapon category.
The women's team took home the NIWFA saber championship behind the strong fencing of newcomers Emma Nostrand, Alexandra Wheeler, and Kim Baldino. Fellow freshman Brenna Rabel captured first place in epee. With Drew taking 1st in saber, 3rd in epee and 5th in foil, the Rangers claimed second place in the overall tournament behind Temple University, and earned the prestigious Division III Team Trophy as the team with the highest point total from a Division III school. Prior to the NIWFA championships, the Rangers charged through the Eastern Women's Fencing Conference (EWFC) championships by taking home their third consecutive title since joining the EWFC in 2002-03. Head coach Dayn DeRose and assistants Amy Reibman and Miyako DeRose were named the EWFC Coaching Staff of the Year, marking the second time in three seasons.
For the second straight year, Dana Sanford qualified for the NCAA national tournament, while freshman Emma Nostrand became the first woman fencer from Drew to ever qualify for the NCAA tournament. The duo finished 16th and 19th, respectively to place Drew 20th among 33 schools.
Drew fencing has officially arrived! With their ever-improving results, the Rangers are now invited on a regular basis to compete against many of the nation's finest fencing programs, including Penn State, U-Penn, Duke, UNC, and Rutgers. The Blue and Green face a fierce schedule as always, and welcome the return of the annual Drew Invitational, which will feature not only MACFA schools, but Vassar, Vermont, and UNC (who neither the Ranger men or women have ever lost to) as well.
The 2005-06 squad anticipates the arrival of some top high school fencers. The men's side continues to flourish with an abundance of talent, including former top-five cadet rated sabre fencer Joe Liu (Stockbridge, GA), sabre transfer Max Pike (Livingston, NJ), and B-foilist Dennis Kellaher (Merchantville NJ). On the women's side, foilist Emily Lynch (Stratford, CT) and local Lawrenceville Prep standout epeeist Naomi Bocarsely (Plainsboro, NJ) will be looking to make an immediate impact on Drew fencing.
