Lawrence fencers take 10th at MFC Championships

NOTRE DAME, Ind. — Lawrence University finished 10th at the Midwest Fencing Conference Championships this past weekend at the University of Notre Dame.

Lawrence finished with 850 points among the 21 teams. Notre Dame won the title with 1,590 points.

In the individual portion of the tournament, the top finisher for the Vikings was Graham Jones. He finished 10th in men’s sabre. Other top finishers among the men were Alex Biehl, who took 18th in foil, and Moses Zarkin-Scott, who was 27th in epee.

On the women’s side, the top finisher was Shelby Guinn, who placed 15th in sabre. Katherine Ling grabbed 21st in foil, and Alyssa Rosenbaum was 29th in epee.

In the team tournament, men’s sabre led the way by finishing fourth. The Vikings defeated Detroit Mercy 5-1 and then topped the University of Chicago 5-3 in the quarterfinals. The Vikings then lost 5-2 to Ohio State in the semifinals and fell 5-1 to Michigan in the third-place match.

Men’s epee finished sixth after a 5-4 loss to Purdue in the fifth-place match. The Vikings defeated Illinois 5-2 before a 5-1 loss to Ohio State in the quarterfinals. Lawrence rebounded to beat Michigan 5-3 to earn a berth in the fifth-place match.

Men’s foil finished 16th after a 5-2 loss to Oberlin in the 15th-place match.

On the women’s side, foil led the Vikings with a ninth-place finish. The Vikings opened with a 5-2 loss to Michigan State, but the Vikings came back to beat Cleveland State 5-1 and Bowling Green 5-2 to get a spot in the ninth-place match. The Vikings then beat Xavier 5-2 for ninth.

Women’s epee finished 13th by defeated Case Western Reserve 5-1 in the 13th-place match. The Vikings defeated Wisconsin 5-1 to open play but lost to Northwestern and Oberlin before bouncing back to beat Xavier 5-3.