Men's fencing outspars Lions

The sabers were flying in Jadwin Gymnasium on Saturday when the men's and women's fencing teams squared off against St. John's, Columbia and Rutgers.

Columbia, whose men's team has the honor of being the defending Ivy League champion, had given the Tigers trouble in the past, including a solid 18-9 thrashing last year in the same Intersession match. These past struggles made Princeton's improbable 14-13 win all the more exhilarating and enjoyable.

"You always want to beat the former Ivy League champion," assistant coach Marcos Lucchetti said.

Despite the excitement generated from the inter-Ivy rivalry, St. John's men's team very well may have been the story of the day. Ranked third nationally, the Red Storm swept through the round robin on Saturday, improving their record to 7-0 on the year.

The Princeton men, who were ranked sixth nationally entering the weekend, improved to 6-1 .

"It was a team effort. We trained very hard," Lucchatti said. "We've been working on footwork and mental preparation."

The Tiger women were not as fortunate against the Lions, falling 16-11. They rebounded against Rutgers, however, before dropping the match to St. John's. Junior foilest Jaqueline Leahy helped lead the charge for the Tigers, winning all three of her bouts.

"I think that overall I was pleased with my performance," Leahy said. "There is still a lot of training to be done before the NCAA Championships, but this meet was an indication that our training thus far has paid off."

Columbia's women's team outperformed their male counterparts, picking up victories against St. John's and Rutgers to end the day with an impressive sweep.

Rutgers failed to secure a victory in any of its six matches. Luckily, the Scarlet Knights did not have to contemplate their performances during a long bus ride, as Rutgers only drove back to New Brunswick.

The women's lone win against the Scarlet Knights demonstrates that the Tigers still have much to improve on.

"As a team we need to work very hard over the next few weeks," Leahy said. "In five-touch bouts the victory can go either way, despite unequal levels of experience, so we should work as hard as we can to get the edge in order to upset the teams with more experienced fencers."