March 2026 NAC, Day 2 Recap: Podium Dreams, New Friendships and Scrapbook-Worthy Wins
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by Bryan Wendell
Six champions shine Saturday in Cleveland, proving that joy and confidence can be powerful allies on the strip.
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The thrill of winning a fencing medal is hard to beat. But for Kei Esaki (S-Class Fencing), simply stepping onto the finals strip was already a moment she’ll never forget.
“I couldn't believe I was fencing on the podium in front of everyone,” she says. “It feels like I was in a dream. My coach was really telling me to have fun, so I really had fun.”
That dream turned into reality — and gold — as Esaki captured one of six gold medals awarded Saturday at the March 2026 North American Cup in Cleveland.
Fueling the Y-12 Women's Foil fencer's performance was a straightforward pre-competition breakfast of oatmeal and fruit. Beyond that, the biggest boost came from the energy around her.
“I really appreciate my friends,” she says. “They were around me cheering me on all day.”
Support from friends and fellow fencers was also part of the story for Division II Women’s Epee gold medalist Jacey Cho (Bayside Fencing Club). In fact, the competition helped her build a few new connections.
“I made a few friends today,” she says. “Beatrice Burrows, and my good old friend Zoey Bi. Beatrice Burrows gave me a lot of advice — so I give a shoutout to her.”
Cho also relied on encouragement from her coaches — guidance that resonates with fencers at every level.
“Don’t stress, be confident and it's OK if you lose,” she says. “Just do your best.”
For Andrew Yi (Nazlymov Fencing Foundation), the Y-12 Men’s Saber gold medalist, Saturday’s result will earn a permanent spot in a special place at home.
“The normal SYC and RYC medals go in a box,” he says. “But NAC medals — those I put in an album. And then I put a picture with it.”
Yi’s performance was certainly worth documenting. After finishing third out of pools with a 6–0 record and a +23 indicator, he carried that momentum through the elimination rounds, winning bouts by scores as comfortable as 15–4 and as tight as 15–14.
Much of that confidence, Yi says, comes from challenging himself in practice by fencing older teammates.
“It’s to get some more experience,” he says. “Fencing the older kids gives you a better mentality. So when you lose, you can toughen up and gain something.”
Day 2 Medalists
Y-12 Women’s Foil
Gold: Kei Esaki (S-Class Fencing)
Coach: Eli Schenkel
Silver: Sohyung Lee (Gutkovskiy Fencing Academy)
Bronze: Kayla Mcsherry (Fencers Club Inc.)
Bronze: Sophie Hu (Renaissance Fencing Club)
5th: Qianchen Liu (Mountain Fencing)
6th: Lauren Park (Precision Athletics Fencing Club)
7th: Zoe Lee (Silicon Valley Fencing Center)
8th: Miranda Lai (Fencing Institute of Texas)
Y-12 Men’s Epee
Gold: Evan Du (LA International Fencing)
Coaches: Gago Demirchian, Lewis Weiss
Silver: Alexander Luo (Wanglei International Fencing Club)
Bronze: Wesley Kropp (Elite Fencing Academy)
Bronze: Matthew Hwang (Fortune Fencing)
5th: Joey Zhang (Dynamo Fencing Center Inc.)
7th: Austin Liu (Alliance Fencing Academy)
8th: Jayden Lai (New York Fencing Academy)
Y-12 Men’s Saber
Gold: Andrew Yi (Nazlymov Fencing Foundation)
Coaches: Vitalii Nazlymov, Fikrat Valiyev, Aleksandr Filatov, Elizoveta Koroleva
Silver: George Koren (Dynamo Fencing Center Inc.)
Bronze: Daniel Levy (Nazlymov Fencing Foundation)
Bronze: David Wang (Avant Garde Fencers Club, Inc & LA Fencing Academy of Pomona)
5th: Ishaan Kaul (Nellya Fencers)
6th: Louis Henderson (Tim Morehouse Fencing Club)
7th: Branden Fu (South Bay Fencing Academy)
8th: Daniel Isayenko (Manhattan Fencing Center
Division II Women’s Epee
Gold: Jacey Cho (Bayside Fencing Club)
Coaches: Dima Chumak, Slava Zingerman
Silver: Yeriel Lee (Las Vegas Fencing Academy)
Bronze: Olivia Wang (Dynamo Fencing Center Inc.)
Bronze: Kylie Youn (Rain City Fencing Center)
5th: Aleena Akudovich (Toronto Fencing Academy Sword Players)
6th: Paree Sheikh (New York Fencing Academy)
7th: Lashia Arulkumar (Bida Fencing Academy)
8th: Avery Hale (Alamo Fencing Academy)
Division II Women’s Saber
Gold: Catherine Kim (Globus Fencing Academy)
Coaches: Lee Hyo Kun, Kim Jaeku, Woo Namgil, Ali Pakdaman, Rubin Hong, Tony Escueta
Silver: Lilac Ding (Asgard Fencing Club)
Bronze: Stella Yu (LA Fencing Academy of Pomona)
Bronze: Sahra Sevastopulo (Nazlymov Fencing Foundation)
5th: Elaine Chen (South Bay Fencing Academy)
6th: Cerise Wong (The Fencing Center)
7th: Masha Motova (Dynamo Fencing Center Inc.)
8th: Caroline Yang (Salle Auriol Seattle)
Division II Men’s Foil
Gold: Haoxuan He (Mountain Fencing)
Coaches: Zhang Jie
Silver: Declan Hart-Syed (Tim Morehouse Fencing Club (Port Chester))
Bronze: Tim Abramkin (Star Fencing Academy)
Bronze: Abin Lee (LA International Fencing)
5th: Alistair Bedworth (Northwest Fencing Center)
6th: Jean Leparoux (Elite Fencing Club)
7th: Aaron Liu (Canadian Fencing Academy)
8th: Lucas Li (LA International Fencing)
Day 2 Photos
See the Day 2 gallery of Serge Timacheff photos on Facebook.
