In a tournament that seemed to be up for grabs, Penn State's newest fencer, freshman Ian Farr, held his own against some of the nation's best fencers only to fall to one of his most familiar opponents.

Farr was one of three athletes representing the Penn State fencing team who had the rare opportunity to compete for a possible spot on the United States Olympic fencing team. He had the best finish of the group, placing ninth overall in the junior saber.

It was the first part of a two-weekend-long tournament, the U.S Olympic Trial/North American Cup Open.

Farr cruised through the first two preliminary rounds and was seeded seventh in the top-32 for the junior saber. He battled his way to a 13-8 lead in the match that would have sent him to the finals, but fell to a remarkable comeback.

Farr had a chance to get back into the final match when he took on a former high school teammate in a consolation bout. He lost the match, solidifying his ninth-place finish.

"In the past, [Farr] is generally stronger than him, but he must've just been drained from the previous match," Penn State assistant fencing coach David Lyng said. "Ninth place is nothing to be ashamed of. He proved he is certainly capable of going against great competition."

This marks the year's first big performance for Farr, one of the team's strongest newcomers. However, he is no stranger success, winning a handful of tournaments at the end of last year.

Penn State sophomore Marten Zagunis also competed in the men's saber and three-time All-American Heather Brosnan was scheduled to compete in the women's saber at the Convention Center in San Diego, Calif.

Penn State fencing coach Emmanuil Kaidanov said Brosnan did not compete due to an aggravation of an ankle sprain. Brosnan was not available for comment.

Zagunis, who was coming off an impressive ninth-place finish in last month's trials, battled through two preliminary rounds and into the top-32 direct elimination round. He lost his first bout in the top 32 to finish 25th in the senior men's saber. It was not his best performance, but Kaidanov said he still showed improvement and competed.

The U.S Olympic Trial/North American Cup Open is one of many stops in a long road for Olympic hopefuls. There are many events throughout the year where fencers try to accumulate points towards their seeding on the national team.

"The process is really complicated, but the bottom line is the better you do in the big events [U.S Olympic Trial], the better your chances are," said freshman epee Case Szarwark, the 4th seed on the junior national team. "Each time you compete over the nine-month period it is important for you, but none of these events have an effect on [your] team.

Szarwark will represent Penn State along with two teammates when the tournament concludes next weekend in San Diego.