Crimson Fencing to Host Harvard Invitational

Photo courtesy of Gil Talbot.

The Particulars:
The Crimson hosts the Harvard Invitational Nov. 29. Six other institutions will be competing in the one-day event. Along with the Crimson, NYU, North Carolina, Penn State, Princeton, Sacred Heart and Vassar will all be fencing.

Last Time Out:
The Crimson men competed at the Garret Penn State Open, Nov. 21-22 and earned three top-five finishes. Sophomore Valentin Staller captured the silver medal in the sabre while freshman Thomas Kolasa placed fifth in the sabre. Sophomore James Hawrot took fifth in the epee.

Sophomore Ivan Bochkov also competed in the sabre, finishing 34th.  Senior co-captain Karl Harmenberg placed 18th in the epee.  Freshman Ben White, junior Wesley Talcott and freshman Benjamin Cohen placed 32nd, 34th and 51st, respectively.

In the foil, senior Long Ouyang was Harvard’s top finisher in that weapon, finishing 26th, while junior Hao Meng was 28th.  Rookie Tommasso di Robilant (39th), freshman Thomas Snell (40th) and junior Nick Culbertson (44th) rounded out the field of Harvard fencers at the meet.

The Crimson women competed at the Garret Penn State Open, Nov. 21-22 and earned two medalists. Sophomore co-captains Caroline Vloka and Noam Mills each captured medals at the first event of the 2009-10 season. Vloka took home the silver medal in the sabre and Mills earned the bronze medal in the epee.

Freshman Elena Helgiu placed 16th and sophomore Hayley Levitt finished 28th in the sabre. In the epee, rookies Nadia Eldeib, Felicia Sun and Alexa Fishman finished 18th, 19th and 44th, respectively.

Sophomore Shelby MacLeod was Harvard’s top finisher in the foil, grabbing 13th. Freshman Katherine Chou rounded out the field for the Crimson, coming in 30th.

About Harvard Men:
Today’s competition is the Crimson’s second event of the 2009-10 campaign. Harvard recently competed at the Garret Penn State Open, Nov. 21-22. At the two-day long event, the Crimson earned three top-five finishes including placing a sabre fencer on the podium. Sophomore Valentin Staller placed second in the sabre, taking home the silver medal. Freshman Thomas Kolasa and sophomore James Harwot each captured a fifth-place finish in the sabre and epee events, respectively.

About Harvard Women:
Today’s competition is the Crimson’s second event of the 2009-10 campaign. Harvard recently competed at the Garret Penn State Open, Nov. 21-22. At the two-day long event, the Crimson put two fencers on the podium, Noam Mill and Caroline Vloka. Vloka captured the silver medal in the sabre and Mill took the bronze in the epee. In the foil, sophomore Shelby MacLeod grabbed a 13th place finish.

Surveying the Men's Field:
The defending national champions, Penn State, will be partcipating in the round robin tournament. The Nittany Lions began their season at the Temple Open, Nov. 1. North Carolina also kicked off their year at the Temple Open.  Princeton comes into Cambridge, Mass. after having competed in one tournament, the Penn State Open, Nov. 21-22. NYU enters the weekend with two dual meets under their belts as well as the Temple Open. Vassar already has 10 wins in 2009-10 and no losses, including five wins at the Vassar Invitational. Sacred Heart has competed in nine dual matches so far this season.

Surveying the Women's Competition:
The defending national champions, Penn State, will be partcipating in the round robin tournament. The Nittany Lions began their season at the Temple Open, Nov. 1. North Carolina also kicked off their year at the Temple Open.  Princeton comes into Cambridge, Mass. after having competed in one tournament, the Penn State Open, Nov. 21-22. NYU enters the weekend with two dual meets under their belts as well as the Temple Open. Vassar already has eight wins and three losses, including five wins at the Vassar Invitational. Sacred Heart has competed in nine dual matches so far this season.

A “Brand” New Season:
The 2009-10 season marks head coach Peter Brand’s tenth season at the helm of the Harvard fencing program. Brand currently has 89 wins to his credit through his first nine seasons. He has also led the Crimson to its only fencing national championship. In 2005-06, Harvard compiled an undefeated overall record of 11-0 en route to the national championship, IFA title, and Ivy League crown.

A Pair of Skippers:
Harvard is led by two captains for only the 15th time in the program’s 121-year history. Seniors Karl Harmenberg and Long Ouyang are the captains of the 2009-10 Crimson men’s fencing team. Harmenberg, who fences with the epee, hails from Stockholm, Sweden. Ouyang, a foil fencer, is a Vienna, Va. native.

Young Guns Lead the Way:
Harvard is captained by sophomores Noam Mills and Caroline Vloka. Mills, hailing from Kfar Saba, Israel, placed second at the 2009 NCAA Championships, finished seventh at the 2009 European Championships and competed at the 2008 Beijing Olympics for Team Israel. Vloka, who calls Upper Saddle River, N.J. home, also placed second at last year’s NCAA Championships.

Looking Forward:
The Crimson women's team will host Tufts Thursday, Dec. 3 at 5:30 p.m.

Schedule: