The Penn State fencing team benefited from a somewhat unexpected surprise this weekend. Captain Alex Weber, who was originally scheduled to participate in the World Cup in London this weekend, opted to compete in Penn State's final home dual meet of the regular season.
Weber's athleticism and leadership proved to be a factor in the fencing team's domination of this weekend's opponents. Both the men's (8-0) and women's (8-0) teams finished the weekend with convincing wins against Duke, Stanford, North Carolina and Hunter.
"His confidence radiates and helps his teammates to perform their best," Penn State fencing coach Emmanuil Kaidanov said. "His demeanor is very positive for the team."
Weber, who missed practice this week because of illness, took heed of Kaidanov's advice to bypass the Cup for the team's dual meet. If Weber had gone to the Cup, he wouldn't have been able to compete up to his level of potential, Kaidanov said.
Weber will miss next weekend's much-anticipated meet against Notre Dame, the No. 2 team in the country, to compete in a World Cup event in Budapest, Hungary. Freshman Marten Zagunis, who continued to dazzle coaches and teammates by posting a 9-1 mark this weekend, will be counted on to carry the men's saber squad.
Senior Jessica Burke, a former national champion in the woman's epee, was also expected to miss this past weekend's meet to participate in the U.S. Olympic fencing trials. Unlike Weber, Burke was unable to pull off a surprise appearance.
Freshman Katarzyna Trzopek, who captured the women's epee title at last week's North American Cup Open, was able to fill the void, piecing together a near-perfect outing. Led by Trzopek's 10-1 effort, the women posted a 20-7 win over Duke, a 19-8 win over Stanford, a 24-3 win over North Carolina and a 24-3 win over Hunter. The men dominated opponents in much the same fashion, defeating Duke 21-6, Stanford 16-11, North Carolina 22-5 and Hunter 26-1.
Two-time All-American junior Adam Wiercioch and junior Amir Rahimi paved the way for the men, registering 10-0 and 9-0 records. With the wins, the men have won 24 consecutive regular-season matches dating back to Dec. 2, 2001, and both teams are undefeated through eight matches for the second straight year. Despite early success, Kaidanov is unwilling to shrug off the "underdog" label he applied to the team at the start of the regular season.
Kaidanov downplayed Penn State's No. 1 ranking.
He said that coaches tend to judge the Lions by their reputation rather than their actual performance.
"It's surprising to see us ranked No. 1 in the listings," Kaidanov said..
"But I would prefer to see us No. 1 at the end of the season."
