Ohio State Fencing Claims First National Title in Program History – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/28/2004 12:00:00 AM | Fencing
March 28, 2004
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State fencing team won its first-ever NCAA National Collegiate Fencing Championship Sunday at the Gosman Athletic Center in Waltham, Mass. The Buckeyes outscored second-place Penn State by 34 points, 194-160, en route to the national crown. Ohio State posted the second-highest team total in the five years that the NCAA has contested events in the six weapons.
The Buckeyes won 97 bouts in both the men’s and women’s competition to reach their total of 194 points. Penn State surpassed the Notre Dame on the final day of competition to keep its streak of finishing in the top two of every NCAA National Collegiate Fencing Championship that has been held since 1990. Notre Dame finished in third place with 153 points, while St. John’s moved into the top four with 149 points. Columbia placed fifth with 146 points. St. John’s was the top scorer in the men’s competition, totaling 109 bout victories.
Individually, Ohio State sophomore Adam Crompton (So. Newark, N.J.) defended his 2003 sabre crown. Crompton defeated Columbia fencer Sergey Isayenko, 15-14, in the title bout. At the 2003 NCAA Championships, Crompton defeated Ivan Lee of St. John’s, 15-13, in the gold medal round to capture Ohio State’s first individual national title since Yelena Kalkina won the gold medal in women’s foil in 1997.
Buckeye freshman Boaz Ellis (Fr., Zapora, Israel) went 24-1 in duals to claim his first NCAA title in foil. Ellis defeated Yale’s Cory Werk, 15-8, in the title bout.
Juniors Hanna Thompson (Jr., Rochester, N.Y.) and Louise Bond-Williams (Jr., Gloucestershire, England) claimed the bronze medal in foil and sabre, respectively. Other fencers who placed in at the NCAA Championships include Denis Tolkachev (4th/men’s epee), Spencer Jones (10th/men’s epee), Nathan Weir (11th/men’s foil), Jason Paul (9th/men’s sabre), Kaela Brendler (7th/women’s epee), Alexandra Shklar (8th/ women’s epee), Metta Thompson (5th/ women’s foil) and Marguerite Plekhanov (10th/women’s sabre).
2004 NCAA Championships Results Team Standings (Top 10)- 1. Ohio State 194 2. Penn State 160 3. Notre Dame 153 4. St. John’s 149 5. Columbia 146 6. Pennsylvania 104 7. Princeton 79 8. Harvard 73 9. Wayne State 62 10 Stanford 60
