Feb. 23, 2007

NEWARK, N.J. - The Lafayette fencing team traveled to New Jersey Institute of Technology, claiming a 3-2 record on the day. The Leopards were victorious against host NJIT, Yeshiva, and Hunter College, while dropping contests to Stevens Institute of Technology and Johns Hopkins.

Lafayette started with a strong saber performance against NJIT. The Leopards used two wins from Luigi Camilleri and another from freshman reserve Steve Jones, on their way to a 6-3 saber win. Following a 9-0 foil victory due to forfeit, the epee squad followed the trend with a 6-3 win. Tonye Wilcox notched three victories for Lafayette, while Robert Boguski added two of his own. John Christian grabbed the final epee win for the Leopards, putting the finishing touches on Lafayette's 21-6 victory.

Despite falling to Stevens Institute of Technology 22-5 in their second dual of the day, the Leopards bounced back for a dramtic 14-13 win over Yeshiva. Following a 7-2 saber loss, the foil squad notched a 6-3 victory, using two wins senior Constance To and another from Meghan Hayward. Freshman Jarrod Rottau swept his opponents, tallying three wins for the Leopards. With Lafayette trailing 10-8 going into the epee, the Leopards were faced with the unenviable task of having to win six of the nine bouts to claim the team victory. Leading 4-3 with two bouts remaining, Lafayette grabbed 5-4 wins from Boguski and Christian to clinch the 14-13 team victory for the Leopards.

Riding the momentum of the Yeshiva victory, the Leopard saber squad got back on track with a 7-2 victory, using a win from each saber fencer, including a 5-0 shutout from Annalese Maddox, and another win from Jones. A narrow 5-4 defeat from the foil squad was picked up with a 5-4 epee win to give the Leopards the 16-11 victory.

Lafayette fell to Johns Hopkins 20-7 in the final bout of the day, as the Leopards returned home with a solid 3-2 performance on the afternoon.