CLEVELAND, Ohio - The NCAA has announced that Dorian Pichola, Amanda Provance, Shelbie Seeberg, Paul DiVienti, Mason Moskowitz and De'Mario Steele have all been selected to represent Cleveland State at the 2021 NCAA Fencing Championships hosted by Penn State on March 25-28.
This marks the first time since 2014 that the men's team qualified a fencer to the national championships, while this is the first time since 2001 that the women's team will have a representative. With six fencers qualifying, this ties the most NCAA qualifiers in a single season in program history.
COMPLETE LIST OF 2021 NCAA QUALIFIERS
The NCAA Championships will begin with a round-robin format of five-touch bouts. Following round-robin play, the top-four finishers in each weapon will advance to 15-touch semifinal bouts. Semifinal winners will then face off to determine first and second places, while the non-advancing fencers will be awarded a tie for third place.
Overall team finishes will be based on points earned by each individual, with one point awarded for each victory throughout the duration of the championship.
On the women's side, juniors Dorian Pichola and Shelbie Seeberg, and freshman Amanda Provance will represent the Vikings, with Pichola becoming the first fencer in program history to compete in women's saber at the NCAA Championships. Seeberg will mark just the third foil competitor at the NCAA Championships in program history, while Provance, who has only dropped four bouts all season, will be ending her rookie campaign with an epee appearance at the NCAA Championships.
For the men, Paul DiVenti, Mason Moskowitz and De'Mario Steele will compete for Cleveland State. DiVenti was a Second Team All-MFC honoree last season, and will be the first men's foil fencer at the NCAA Championships since Liran Gross in 2010. Moskowitz is the first Cleveland State representative in men's saber since Chaun Shadid in 2000, while Steele is just the third Viking to compete in the men's epee since 1995.
A live feed of semifinal and final bouts will be available on the WatchESPN app.
