The UNC fencing teams took a step back in the Garret Penn State Open after an impressive start to the season while facing some of the toughest competition in the country.
What happened?
The women's team kicked off the event with an 8:30 a.m. start on Saturday in the foil and epee events. Sydney Persing had the best showing for the Tar Heels in the foil event, finishing in 26th place. No other UNC fencer finished in the top 40 spots for the event.
In the epee event, Charlotte Summers, a first-year, had the top spot with a 41st-place showing.
The squad did fare much better in the saber tournament later that day when first-year Julia Parzecki had s strong series of bouts and placed 11th in the event. Jackie Litynski joined Parzecki as the only other Tar Heel to finish in the top-25 when she snuck in at 24th.
The men’s team had similar trouble as their female counterparts against some of the toughest squads in the country a day later.
Junior Brian Lee was the best Tar Heel with the foil and the only one in the top-25 at No. 22 on the leaderboard. Sophomore Charles Chow followed close behind with a 30th-place finish.
The team followed the foil e vent with an up and down showing in the epee that saw first-year Jared Cohen top the leaderboard for UNC at No. 40.
To end the tournament, the men’s team had its best appearance of the weekend in the saber event. First-years Daniel Mogilevsky and Beni Rabinowitz placed a respectable 18th and 19th, respectively, while three other Tar Heels finished in the top-25 of 58 total competitors.
