2016 NCAA Fencing Committee selects championship participants
3/15/2016 12:00:00 AM | Fencing
U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo. - INDIANAPOLIS---The NCAA Men's and Women's Fencing Committee has announced the field of 144 competitors who will participate in the 2016 National Collegiate Men's and Women's Fencing Championships. Brandeis University will host the championships at Gosman Sports and Convocation Center in Waltham, Massachusetts.
Air Force senior fencer Mary McElwee from San Francisco, Calif., was selected to compete in the NCAA Fencing Championships in women's individual foil. McElwee is one of only two Air Force women to qualify for the fencing championships in four-consecutive years. Her run for the nationals started in 2013 when she finished 15th in foil. She competed in 2014 (18th) and 2015 (13th). In 2016, she was named Western Fencing Conference all-conference, and was the undefeated women's foil champion at the West Region Championships. McElwee is one of the Falcons' more successful women fencers with a 224-70 career record. She is a two-time all-region and all-conference twice.
The National Collegiate Men's and Women's Fencing Championships include individual events in each of the six weapons (men's épée, men's foil, men's sabre, women's épée, women's foil and women's sabre).
Fencers will compete in a round-robin format of five-touch bouts. After the round-robin, the top-four finishers in each weapon will fence in semifinal 15-touch bouts, with the winners fencing to determine first and second places, and the non-advancing fencers being awarded a tie for third place.
An institution's place finish in the championships will be based on points earned by each individual. A team will be awarded one point for each victory by its student-athletes for the duration of the championships.
