HOBOKEN, N.J. (February 1, 2009) – Senior epeeist Rachel Cannell posted a 12-2 outing to help the Stevens Institute of Technology women's fencing team to a 3-2 day at the 2009 Stevens Invitational in Hoboken, N.J. on Sunday. The epee squad finished 27-18 at today's event, including impressive wins over Brandeis University and Farleigh Dickinson University as the Ducks improve to 14-3 on the year. In the 35-year history of women's fencing at Stevens, there has been just four other seasons that head coach Linda Vollkommer-Lynch has surpassed the 13-win mark in a season.
The Ducks tallied wins against FDU (18-9), Queens College (20-7) and Hunter College (17-10), while Stevens fell to Temple University (3-24) and Brandeis (8-19). Arguably one of the best epee squads in all of Division III, the Judges of Brandeis felt the wrath of the Ducks as the epee team took down Brandeis 5-4. Stevens' epee squad also posted a flawless 9-0 ledger against Hunter, which assisted in the Ducks third victory of the day.
Sophomore epeeist Meagan Ritter finished 9-5 on the day, while in foil, senior Khairun Nisa Aziz and junior Danielle Bisson registered records of 6-8 and 6-7, respectively. Finally, the sabre division was led by senior Laura Sodon and freshman Krista Sticco. Sodon carded a 7-8 mark on the day as Sticco posted a 6-7 performance.
“It was an exciting day for us,” said Vollkommer-Lynch. “I was very impressed with our epee squad; they held their own against one of the top epee team's in the nation. Our foil unit helped to ensure a win over Hunter with their 8-1 showing. The event ran smoothly and it was a great preview for next week when we compete in the EWFC Championships,” added Vollkommer-Lynch.
Aside from today's excellent performance, special recognition goes out to a pair of talented seniors that have made their mark on the Stevens women's fencing program in more ways than dominating on the strips. Captains Laura Sodon and Rachel Cannell have provided solid leadership and helped to instill the great tradition of fencing that has been built over the years. Both Sodon and Cannell have reached some impressive milestones in their final seasons as a Duck. Cannell has moved into second all-time for most wins by an epee fencer in the history of women's fencing at Stevens. Sodon recently surpassed the 100-career win-plateau to stand as the all-time leader at Stevens for wins in the sabre division.
Stevens will return to action next Sunday at the Eastern Women's Fencing Conference Championships held at the campus of Haverford College, scheduled for a 10 a.m. start. The Ducks will face three teams that were at today's competition: Hunter, Johns Hopkins University and Drew University.
2009 Stevens Invitational Team Records
Temple 4-0
Brandies 4-1
Drew 3-1
Stevens 3-2
JHU 2-2
Hunter 2-3
Queens 0-4
FDU 0-5
