On March 20 and March 21, Lev BenAvram ’25 went to Penn State University to participate at the NCAA Fencing Nationals. On the first day, he placed 10th, and on the second day, he placed eighth.

On the first day of nationals, BenAvram started the day off strong by scoring five out of seven victories against his opponents. Among the teams he defeated were fencers from Princeton and North Carolina University. While his second round began with a victory over Penn State, he soon dropped three matches against another Penn player and two from Notre Dame. In the third round, he narrowly lost 5-4 against Wagner College, but managed to end the day on a high note by beating Wayne State and two Lawrence University players. However, one of the wins he had scored that day was negated after a player withdrew due to injury.

On the second day, BenAvram faced players from Harvard, Yale and Columbia, winning three out of the four matches and ultimately falling against the Bulldogs. The next round was the final one of the Nationals. BenAvram beat two fencers from Ohio State and one from Stanford, before a dramatic final match against Yassin Khodir of Incarnate Word. BenAvram battled back from what looked like a 4-1 defeat, but ultimately fell 5-4 when Khodir scored the last touch.

BenAvram’s overall record was 14 wins to eight losses, and his eighth-place finish was the best among all Division III men’s fencers at the NCAA Championships. Head Coach Elif Sachs Soyer was quoted praising BenAvram’s performance, saying “The pressure was on Lev to represent Brandeis and carry the banner … He felt that responsibility and was up to the task. He knew he had to let go of the reins a little bit and use his voice while maintaining self-control.”