Six wins and no losses read the line of Beth Shelley's final fencing meet.

Those six wins didn't matter to this team. Competitions aren't always about winning. Penn State fencing was about to lose one of its most special members.

Shelley started fencing at Penn State for the club team. But one fateful fall day during her freshman year, assistant coach Wes Glon asked her to try out for the team.

"I will never forget her reaction," Glon said.

"She blushed and asked, 'Are you sure I am good enough to try for the best team in the country?'

"When I think about Beth, the Cinderella story comes to my mind immediately."

Shelley can't pinpoint the day her status as team member was made official.

But, she'll always remember the proposition.

"It was more of an honor just to be asked," Shelley said. "It was an overwhelming feeling."

Shelley sported a 30-13 dual meet record in her four years here at Penn State.

However, teammates reiterate what important qualities Shelley brought to the team on a daily basis.

"She's very, very friendly and she's always smiling," foil fencer Judy Gordon said. "She's very respectful. She's one of my best friends on the team.

"If I was in a bad mood, she was always there."

"When I had a bad day, just having her there made me feel better," said fellow epee fencer Stephanie Eim. "I won't have her anymore to lean on."

Shelley's warm personality couldn't be better explained than with a conversation she had with teammate Jessie Burke this past Saturday at New York University.

Burke has a personal rivalry with the Princeton fencers. At times, it gets quite heated.

"Beth said, 'Don't worry. You're a nice girl,' and she gave me a big hug," Burke said.

The final six wins she had this weekend against Rutgers, North Carolina, and NYU ended a special career, but she has more to come.

The former walk-on epee fencer faces a far greater bout after this semester -- life after college.

Shelley graduates in just a matter of days and her future is still ahead.

Graduating with a degree in mechanical engineering, Shelley won't divulge many of her secrets. She does plan to work as a field engineer with a more hands-on approach.

No doubt about it, she'll bring the joy to her future colleagues that made her irreplaceable to the fencing team.

"I'll miss her smiles and her laughs," Gordon said.

"She won't be here anymore."

As for Shelley, she'll miss the road trips to watch her teammates compete in NCAAs, but she certainly won't miss 7 a.m. practices.

"Everyone has done so much for me," Shelley said as a tear started to trickle down her cheek and she wiped it away with the cuff of her Penn State sweatshirt. "I thank my teammates and the coaching staff.

"But, I know it is my time to go."