The Brandeis University fencing teams traveled west to the United States Air Force Academy to compete in the Western Invitational against some of the most elite teams in the country. Overall, the Judges were successful, as the men posted a 2-6 mark, defeating Incarnate Word (18-9) and the New Jersey Institute of Technology (22-5). The Brandeis women went 0-9, and Maggie Shealy ’23 had the top individual performance of the tournament.
Épée, which is the largest and heaviest of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing, was the Brandeis men’s most successful event. Earning two squad wins, the Judges defeated Air Force Academy, led by Junior Ben Rogak ’23 who went 2-1. Additionally, the Judges posted a 5-4 win over Notre Dame, led by Josh Shuster ’23 who went 3-0. Tal Kronrod ’25 was individually successful, going 3-0 against UIW and NJIT; fellow first-year Tony Escueta ’25 won four matches for the sabre squad, including a 3-0 win over NJIT.
Shealy outperformed her opponents in the Western Invitational while leading the Judges, as she posted a 13-2 record on the first day and 17-8 overall in the tournament. Shealy had a perfect performance against three of the most competitive teams in the nation—Incarnate Word, Stanford and Notre Dame—and she also went 2-1 against Cal-San Diego and Air Force Academy. On the second day of the tournament, Shealy faced North Carolina and Northwestern, and defeated both, 2-1. Sammy Shortall ’23 and Alex Mckee ’25 led their foil squad in a close 14-13 loss to Air Force; both Shortall and Mckee went 3-0.
As a result of their performance at their first set of dual matches in the Western Invitational, the Brandeis fencing teams had two players take home UAA Fencer of the Week honors. Facing the toughest competition they will all season, the UAA honored Shealy, who earned her second UAA Fencer of the Week honor of the 2021-22 season and the fourth of her career; Shuster, who led the men’s épée squad to success in the tournament, also received UAA Fencer of the Week honors.
The Judges next compete on Saturday, Nov. 20, in the first of two Northeast Fencing Conferences.
