Enyart and French AFA's top finishers in Columbus NAC
1/15/2007 12:00:00 AM | Fencing
"This was a good result for French, said head coach Abdel Salem. "French struggled at the beginning of the season, but I expect this result will hopefully be the beginning of his next level of competition." In the Division I men's epee competition, French only made the top 64 out of 265 competitors where he finished 52nd.
"Eliza has the potential to be one of the best fencers in the nation; she is a hard worker, smart fencer and quick learner," according to Salem.
In Division I, senior Lydia Bigelow also competed in women's epee among 146 competitors. Bigelow finished 91st after losing in the first direct elimination round going 3-3 in pools. According to Salem, "Bigelow is a tough fencer, always giving 100%. We are hoping for both Bigelow and Enyart to qualify for the NCAA Tournament."
Freshman Michael O'Connor finished 119th in Division I men's sabre and 105th in juniors. Alexander Brand made it through the pools, but lost in his first direct elimination. He finished 106th in juniors. "The sabre and foil teams are very young, they have a lot of potential and are ready to work hard," said Salem. "Assistant Coach Adam Skarbonkiewicz is working with them as well to prepare for the upcoming NCAA competitions." The first NCAA meet is Feb. 3 in San Diego followed by the Duke NCAA meet on Feb. 9-10.
In juniors, David Fang finished 179th. The junior men's foil competition was rough for Fang. However, Salem expects that sophomore from Duluth, Ga., will use this experience to prepare for his future competitions with better results. Sophomore Trenton Atwood finished 145th in Division I men's foil among 203 competitors.
The Fencing team will travel to San Diego on Feb. 3 to compete in the UCSD NCAA meet. Following the California trip, the team will compete in Durham N.C. in the Duke NCAA meet.
Air Force NAC "D" Individual Results:
Division I Women's Epee Results (146)
16 Enyart, Elizabeth
91 Bigelow, Lydia E
Division I Men's Epee Results (265)
52 French, Peter R.N.
Junior Men's Epee Results (153)
7 French, Peter R.N.
Division I Men's Foil Results (203)
145 Atwood, Trenton C
Junior Men's Foil Results (200)
179 Fang, David J
Division I Men's Sabre (141)
119 O'Connor, Michael C
Junior Men's Sabre (133)
105 O'Connor, Michael C
106 Brand, Alexander
Complete results are available at www.usfencing.org.
