March 5, 2011
Contact: Dan Carr
SOUTH BEND, Ind. - John Marshall placed sixth overall in the epee, highlighting the Cleveland State fencing team's performance on the first day of the Midwest Conference Championships. The first day of the tournament was individual fencing, and each member of CSU's fencing team had a chance to compete in the tourney.
The day was broken into two rounds: group fencing, in which each fencer participated in a round-robin in a pool with other fencers, and direct elimination, a more traditional bracket format.
In group fencing, Marshall went a perfect 6-0. In the direct elimination portion Marshall defeated three opponents, including a 10-3 win over Northwestern's Charles Geter, to advance to the quarterfinal round. There he was eliminated by Ohio State's Marco Canevari, 15-10. The combined results were enough for Marshall to finish in sixth place.
"John had a good day," head coach Andy Tulleners said. "He entered the direct elimination as the 10th seed, and he improved upon that ranking by fencing well in that round."
Patrick Weber also won a bout in the epee, defeating Clint Mikek of Detroit, 15-5, in the first elimination round.
Tom Bienvenu also had a good day, finishing in a tie for 11th with William McGough of Notre Dame in the saber division. Bienvenu went 5-1 in the group round and won twice in the elimination bracket, defeating Michigan State's Chad Kerr (15-8) and Tom Lorenzo of Detroit (15-6).
Also fencing in the saber class was Bryan Twichell, who placed 35th overall. After a 4-2 showing in the group round, he fell to Indiana's Mak Johnson in his first elimination match in a close 15-12 decision.
Alex Dickinson led the way for the women in the epee, taking 13th overall. She went 4-1 in group fencing and defeated her first two opponents in the elimination round before falling, 15-5, to Kate Cavanaugh of Northwestern. Dickinson defeated Iowa Kate Clark, 15-4, and beat Tasha Domashovetz of Ohio State, 10-9.
Stephanie Lee represented CSU in the foil division, winning two matches in the group round and defeating Michigan State's Elizabeth Connolly, 15-8, in the first elimination match before losing to Northwestern's Camille Provencal-Dalle in the second round.
"Everyone was very loose, especially because this wasn't a varsity competition," Tulleners said. "As a result, we had some of the best fencing we've had all year. Everyone's spirits are up, and we're looking for a good showing in the team round tomorrow."
The Midwest Conference Championships continue on Sunday (March 6) with a team competition to determine the winning school of the tournament.
