Jan. 27, 2013

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State fencing team traveled to New York to participate in the St. John’s Invitational on Jan. 26 and the NYU Invitational Jan. 27. The men’s team came away with a 6-4 record on the weekend while the women’s group finished 5-5.   On Saturday, the Buckeyes competed in five rounds of competition against Notre Dame, St. John’s, Columbia, Harvard and Penn State. The men’s unit picked up wins against Columbia and Harvard in rounds three and four, while the women’s squad defeated Harvard and Penn State in the final two rounds of the tournament.   Seniors Daniel Tafoya and Marco Canevari led the men in the epee weapon category. Tafoya won eight of his 13 bouts while Canevari defeated his opponent seven out of11 times. In men’s foil, junior Zain Shaito won nine of 15 bouts after not giving up a single win to Harvard. Senior Max Stearns led the Buckeye foilists with a record of 11-4.   For the women’s squad, senior Katarzyna Dabrowa finished 12-3 in epee without losing a bout to St. John’s or Harvard. Mona Shaito dominated her St. John’s and Penn State opponents in foil to post a 10-5 finish. In sabre, sophomore Celina Merza also finished with a 10-5 record.   On Sunday, Ohio State fenced against NYU, St. John’s, Columbia, UNC, Northwestern and Yale at the NYU Invitational. The Buckeye men defeated NYU, St. John’s, UNC and Yale while the women picked up wins against NYU, Northwestern and Yale.   Senior Narayan Pathi and Tafoya finished strong on the strips Sunday. They both won all their bouts against the UNC opponents in epee to finish 8-4 and 7-2 respectively. Sophomore Chris Colley posted a 12-3 record in foil to assist the Buckeyes in a win against UNC and St. John’s. For men’s sabre, Stearns battled throughout the day to a 10-5 record.   Dabrowa lost only one bout on Sunday in epee against St. John’s. She led the Buckeyes with a 14-1 finish. Sophomore Mai Shaito competed in foil and did not lose a bout to NYU, making her record 6-3 on the day. In women’s sabre, Merza improved from Saturday to Sunday, finishing 12-3.   Overall, the Buckeyes’ duals record increased to 25-9 after their weekend of competition in New York ended 11-9. Ohio State will return to the strips Feb. 2 at the Northwestern Duals in Evanston, Ill.     Saturday, Jan. 26 St. John’s Invitational Queens, NY.   Round 1 Notre Dame def. OSU 16-11 (Men) Notre Dame def. OSU 14-13 (Women)   Round 2 St. John’s def. OSU 14-13 (Men) St. John’s def. OSU 15-12 (Women)   Round 3 OSU def. Columbia 14-13 (Men) Columbia def. OSU 15-12 (Women)   Round 4 OSU def. Harvard 16-11 (Men) OSU def. Harvard 17-10 (Women)   Round 5 Penn State def. OSU 17-10 (Men) OSU def. Penn State 16-11 (Women)       Sunday, Jan. 27 NYU Invitational New York, NY   Round 1 OSU def. NYU 19-8 (Men) OSU def. NYU 22-5 (Women)   Round 2 OSU def. St. John’s 16-11 (Men) St. John’s def. OSU 16-11 (Women)   Round 3 Columbia def. OSU 16-11 (Men) Columbia def. OSU 17-10 (Women)   Round 4 OSU def. UNC 17-10 (Men) OSU def. Northwestern 18-9 (Women)   Round 5 OSU def. Yale 16-11 (Men) OSU def. Yale 20-7 (Women)