St. John's University Athletics
Top-Ranked SJU Womens Fencing Sweeps, Second-Ranked Men Split
2/24/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Fencing
The mens team beat Penn, 19-8, but dropped its second match of the season, losing to Penn State, 16-11. The Red Storm finish the regular season with a 12-2 record.
On the womens side, St. Johns beat Temple and Penn by scores of 19-8, respectively, and posted an impressive 16-11 win over Penn State despite the absence of two-time All-American and United States Olympian junior Arlene Stevens (Fairport, N.Y.).
In womens action, the Red Storm foil and sabre teams swept all three opponents. Leading the way for St. Johns in the foil was sophomore Irina Khouade (Moscow Region, Russia), who won all nine bouts. Junior Liz Thottam (Beverly Hills, Calif.) won eight of nine bouts, while sophomore Jean Hergenhan (Huntington Station, N.Y.) won seven of nine.
In the sabre, the Red Storm had an impressive outing from all three fencers. Senior Marisa Mustilli (South Orange, N.J.) and freshmen Christina Crane (Atlanta, Ga.) and Julia Gelman (Brooklyn, N.Y.) each won seven of nine bouts.
St. Johns dropped the epee in two of three matches, its first losses all season in that weapon, with the absence of Stevens. Junior Katie Decker (Long Beach, Calif.) won seven of nine bouts, while defending NCAA Champion Emese Takacs (Budapest, Hungary) won five of nine bouts.
On the mens side, the Red Storm epee squad, led by senior Doron Levit (Givataiem, Israel) and sophomore Anton Gurevich (Ashkelon, Israel), swept both matches. Levit won five of six bouts, while Gurevich won all six.
The foil squad beat Penn, 5-4, but lost to Penn State, 6-3, while the sabre squad beat Penn, 6-3, and lost to the Nittany Lions, 6-3. In the foil, senior Joe Fisher (Mishawaka, Ind.) and senior Jon Tiomkin (Brooklyn, N.Y.) each won four of six bouts. In the sabre, junior Ivan Lee (Brooklyn, N.Y.), the defending NCAA Champion, and freshman Dwayne Smith (Elmont, N.Y.) each won four of six bouts.
St. Johns returns to action next weekend, competing at the Intercollegiate Fencing Association Championships on March 2-3 at Columbia in New York.
