Hurme takes gold in the epee at IFAs

Head coach Michel Sebastiani might be disappointed with the fencing team's results this weekend, but he can be proud of how the men's and women's squads have meshed to become one team, often posting the same results.

At this weekend's Intercollegiate Fencing Association (IFA) Tournament, both squads placed fourth out of 11 teams with one podium finish on each side.

Sophomore Tommi Hurme was the top finisher for the men, taking gold in the epee individual's competition for the second year in a row. Hurme's closest match (by touches) actually came against fellow Tiger, freshman Max Peck, which had a final score of 15-12. Hurme's most difficult match, however, came in the semifinals against Harvard's Benjamin Ungar, who took the bronze medal.

"[Ungar] has put up some amazing results this year, and I was glad I could come up with a win," Hurme said.

Unfortunately, the rest of the Tigers did not rise to Hurme's high level of performance. Columbia, which finished in third place, more than doubled Princeton's point total for the day.

Though Hurme took the gold medal in the individual's competion, he only took second for the "A" flight — the fencing strip he shared with other competitors. Hurme was joined in the epee competition by freshman Noah Arjomand and senior Fenil Ghodadra, who placed eighth and 12th on the "B" flight, respectively. Peck continued his strong freshman season, matching Hurme's second place with a duplicate on the "C" flight. The epee squad also took second overall.

The men's saber and foil squads also came out with matching finishes, both placing fifth in the overall competition.

Led by senior captain Owen Cornwall's sixth place finish on the "A" flight and his motivational speeches, the weak saber squad placed John Winnerman sixth on the "B" flight, and a pair of Tigers on the "C" flight standings.

With a fourth-place finish from sophomore Douglas Hohensee on the "A" flight, a fifth place finish from senior Alexander Vandenburg-Rhodes on "B" flight and a thirdplace finish from junior J.P. Mitchell on "C" flight, the foil squad won 37 of the Tigers' 56 points.

The women's squad was led by senior Jacqueline Leahy's bronze medal in the foil competition. Leahy trounced her first few opponents, but found difficulty with Harvard's formidable team. Leahy saw her first loss since the season opener come against the Crimson's Emily Cross in the semifinal. Cross proceeded to win the competition, and Leahy bounced back to form, easily dispatching her last opponent, 15-5.

Like Hurme, Leahy's medal translated to a slide in position on her flight, coming in fourth on the "A" flight. Foil teammate junior Sara Jew-Lim's third place on flight "B" was joined by sophomore Peri Rosenstein's 12th place on "C" flight. Their combined efforts led to a fourth-place finish as a squad.

Princeton's women's epee squad ended up with first place in the competition, and the Tigers' highest weapon finish with top four finishes on all three flights. Freshman Jasjit Bhinder was fourth in the epee tournament and third on flight "C." Her score was amplified by a first place finish from senior Kira Hohensee on "B" flight and junior Erin McGarry's fourth place finish on flight "A."

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The Tigers' poorest performance came from the women's saber squad, who finished sixth in the tournament. Junior captain Elan DiMaio placed seventh on the "A" flight and was followed by sophomore Cara DiGirolamo's eighth-place finish on "B" flight. Senior Caroline Block's fifth-place finish on flight "C" was the squad's most important victory, netting 11 points.

Princeton's regular season may have ended with the IFA's, but the team's top competitors from the regular dual matches of the season head to Durham, N.C., for the NCAA Regionals this weekend.