Feb. 3, 2011

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA - The Johns Hopkins men's fencing team faced a tough task at the 2011 Penn State Invitational where the Blue Jays faced three top 10 teams. Hopkins (5-8) picked up a win over Drew (16-11), but suffered losses to North Carolina (19-8), #9 Duke (22-5), #7 Penn (19-8) and #4 Penn State (21-6).

The Blue Jays opened up against the Tar Heels, falling 6-3 in both the Epee and Sabre and 7-2 in the Foil. In the Epee, Hopkins was led by freshman Richard Bram, who won two of his three bouts, while senior Max Wieder also won two bouts in the Sabre. And in the Foil, it was sophomore Ben Wasser who won a pair of bouts.

In round two, the Blue Devils swept all three weapons, winning 7-2 in the Foil and Sabre, and 8-1 in the Epee. Wasser and freshman Evan Stafford each won a bout in the Foil, while senior Nick Krywopusk picked up the lone Blue Jays' win in the Epee. In the Sabre, Wieder and sophomore Nicolas Barbera each won a bout.

Penn won the Foil 8-1 and the Sabre 6-3, but just edged out Hopkins 5-4 in the Epee. Sophomore Mehdi Pedramfard won the lone bout for Hopkins in the Foil. In the Epee, Krywopusk and Bram each won a pair of bouts as the team decision came down to the final bout where Bob Fishler beat freshman Jay DeYoung, 5-4. In the Sabre, Babera, Wieder and senior Michael Fellows each won a bout.

Hopkins got in the win column in round four against Drew as the Blue Jays won their sixth straight over the Rangers. Drew won the Foil, 8-1, but Hopkins rebounded to win the Epee (6-3) and Sabre (9-0) to take the team win. Stafford picked up the Blue Jays' point in the Foil. In the Epee, Krywopusk, DeYoung and Bram each won two bouts while DeYoung clinched the win with a 5-2 decision over Mike Pignataro. And in the Sabre, Wieder and Barbera led the way, combining for six wins as the Blue Jays swept the weapon.

Hopkins closed out the day against host Penn State, winners of three of the last four NCAA Championships. Penn State took the Foil by an 8-1 score, with Stafford picking up the win for Hopkins. The Nittany Lions then won the Epee, 6-3, with Krywopusk, Bram and DeYoung each winning a bout. And in the Sabre, it was Penn State again coming out on top by a 7-2 score. But the highlight of the match came for Fellows as he beat 2009 NCAA Sabre Champion, Aleksander Ochocki, 5-3.

Hopkins will return to action on Sunday, February 6 as the Blue Jays host the JHU Invitational.

HopkinsSports.com Men's Fencing

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