Jan. 29, 2008

EASTON, Pa. - The Lafayette fencing team returned to action for the first time since November at the MACFA Invitational at Drew University on Sunday. The team went 0-5 against opponents from Drew, Army, Haverford, Princeton and Cornell.

Sophomore epee Banks Clark and senior foil Mike Zboray posted the best records on the day, each going 5-10 in the tournament. Clark had his biggest success against Army, where he won two of three bouts in epee. He also won single bouts against Drew, Haverford and Cornell.

Zboray also had success against Army, going 2-1 against the Black Knights. He also led the Leopards against Cornell in the final meet of the day by winning two bouts.

Lafayette ultimately lost 16-11 against the Big Red, but gave Cornell trouble in sabre. Senior captain Luigi Camilleri went undefeated against the Big Red, while senior Kim Ferguson won two bouts and sophomore Andy Baranousky won one to give the Leopards a 6-3 edge in sabre.

Three wins in foil by Zboray (2-0) and freshman Brittany Beaver (1-2) and two in epee - one each and senior Kristin Irace and Clark - gave Lafayette a score of 11 in the final match of the tournament.

The Leopards were without sophomores Jarrod Rottau and Brian Warner, who are studying abroad this semester.

Lafayette will compete next at the New Jersey Institute of Technology Invitational on Feb. 10 in Newark, N.J.

Results:Round 1: Drew 24, Lafayette 3Round 2: Army 22, Lafayette 5Round 3: Haverford 23, Lafayette  4Round 4: Princeton 26, Lafayette 1Round 5: Cornell 16, Lafayette 11