USA Fencing

(Chicago, Ill.) – Team USA had a successful opening day at the Absolute Fencing Gear® Korfanty World Cup on Friday as 20 saber fencers advanced to the table of 64 on Saturday.

Thirteen U.S. women and seven men will fence in the final day of individual competition at the University of Chicago Flames Athletic Center.

The U.S. Women’s Saber Team began the competition with three Americans seeded in the top 16 which gave them byes out of Friday’s rounds and into the table of 64.

Two-time Olympic Champion Mariel Zagunis (Beaverton, Ore.) is currently ranked #2 in the world while 2012 Olympian Dagmara Wozniak (Avenel, N.J.) is ranked seventh in the world and her three-time Senior World Teammate Ibtihaj Muhammad (Maplewood, N.J.) who won two past Senior World bronzes with Zagunis and Wozniak, is ranked 14^th.

Daria Schneider (New York City, N.Y.) came one step closer to a chance at competing for a third Senior World Team medal when she finished Friday’s competition as the top-ranked fencer in the pools and will enter the direct elimination tables as the 17^th seed.

Muhammad’s younger sister, Faizah Muhammad (Maplewood, N.J.), also went undefeated in the pools to advance to the second day of competition where she could meet her older sibling in the table of 32.

Eliza Stone (Chicago, Ill.) returned from Princeton to her hometown to post an impressive 5-1 result in the pools and qualify directly for the table of 64 as well. Ranked fourth in the nation, Stone is attempting to hold her position for the next two international tournaments in order to secure the final spot on the 2013 Senior World Team.

Of the remaining 24 U.S. women fencing on Friday, 23 advanced out of the pools and into the preliminary tables with seven making it into the table of 64 on Saturday.

Ranked sixth in the United States, Monica Aksamit (Matawan, N.J.) went 5-1 in the pools to earn a bye into the preliminary table of 64 where she defeated Siu In Jenny Ho (HKG), 15-8.

Aksamit, a 2009 Senior World Team member, will face Stone in the table of 64 on Saturday with the winner of that bout meeting either former Senior World medalist Aleksandra Socha (POL) or 2013 Junior World Team Champion Sage Palmedo (Portland, Ore.)

After a 2-3 pool finish, 16-year-old Palmedo defeated Sin Ying Au (HKG), 15-9, in the preliminary table of 128 and her 2012 Junior World teammate, Margaret McDonald (Atlanta, Ga.), 15-7, in the preliminary table of 64 to advance to the second day for the sixth straight time this season.

Fencing in her third Senior World Cup ever, junior fencer Emma Keehan (Chandler, Ariz.) finished the pools, 4-2, and defeated Joanna Lew (Durham, N.C.), 15-10, to advance to the table of 64.

Keehan’s younger sister, Sophie Keehan (Chandler, Ariz.) also fenced on Saturday, but lost her final bout of the day to Adrienne Jarocki (Middle Village, N.Y.) who won gold in the team event and silver in the individual at the Junior Worlds last month. Although Sophie was up, 8-4, at the break, Jarocki came back for a 15-13 win.

Kamali Thompson (Teaneck, N.J.) will return to the table of 64 for the third straight year at this event after a 4-2 pool result and a 15-9 win in the preliminary table of 64 over three-time Junior World medalist Martina Petraglia (ITA).

Although 2009 Cadet World medalist Nicole Glon (State College, Pa.) struggled in pools where she posted a 2-4 result, she defeated Jaeyeun You (KOR), 15-11, and 2013 Junior World medalist Martina Criscio (ITA), 15-13, to advance to the second day of competition where she will face Zagunis in the first round.

Competing at a World Cup for the first time since 2010, Alison Miller (Chicago, Ill.) used the home crowd to her advantage on Friday. Miller finished the pools with a 2-4 record, but won her next two bouts over Aziza Hassan (Brooklyn, N.Y.), 15-11, and three-time Junior World medalist Saoussen Boudiaf (FRA), 15-12.

In the men’s event, London Olympian Daryl Homer (Bronx, N.Y.) skipped the first day of competition due to his 10^th seed in the tournament.

Homer will open competition on Saturday with a table of 64 bout against his former Junior World teammate, Aleksander Ochocki (Linden, N.J.)

Ochocki, who is ranked fourth in the nation and now nearly guaranteed a position on his first Senior World Team, went 3-2 in the pools and defeated Sam Austin (Chapel Hill, N.C.) to advance to the table of 64.

Two-time Junior World medalist Eli Dershwitz (Sherborn, Mass.) will fence in the table of 64 at his second Senior World Cup of the season after finishing 5-1 in the pools and advancing directly to the second day of competition.

London Olympian Jeff Spear (Wynantskill, N.Y.) also advanced to the second day of competition. Spear, who is coming off a recent injury, dropped just one pool bout and defeated Teddy Weller (ISV), 15-8, to qualify for the second day of competition.

In a bid for his fourth Senior World Team, Ben Igoe (Staten Island, N.Y.) finished the pools, 4-2, and defeated Shaul Gordon (CAN), 15-7, in the preliminary table of 64.

Fencing in a reduced pool after former World and Olympic Champion Aldo Montano (ITA) pulled out with an injury, Evan Prochniak (Hudson, N.H.) finished the pool, 3-2. Prochniak defeated two-time Olympian Valery Pryiemka (BLR), 15-14, to advance to the table of 64 for the first time since 2009.

A 2013 Cadet World Team member, Jonah Shainberg (Rye, N.Y.) may have been fencing in just his second Senior World Cup, but he went 5-1 in the pools and held off Aliaksei Likhacheuski (BLR) to win the final bout of the day, 15-14, and advance to the table of 64.

Competition schedule for the remainder of the weekend is as follows:

Saturday, May 4 (Flames Athletic Center)
9 a.m.
Women’s Individual Direct Elimination Table of 64 – Quarter-finals

1:40 p.m.
Men’s Individual Direct Elimination Table of 64 – Quarter-finals

6:30 p.m.
Men’s and Women’s Individual Semifinal and Final and Final Rounds

Sunday, May 5 (Flames Athletic Center)
8:20 a.m.
Women’s Team Direct Elimination Tables

Noon
Men’s Team Direct Elimination Tables

6 p.m.
Men’s and Women’s Bronze and Gold Medal Matches

Results for athletes who placed outside the top 64 are as follows:

Absolute Fencing Gear® Korfanty Women’s Individual World Cup
67. Margaret McDonald (Atlanta, Ga.)
69. Lena Johnson (Peachtree City, Ga.)
72. Sarah Merza (Wayne, N.J.)
74. Ilana Kamber (Short Hills, N.J.)
76. Skyla Powers (Decatur, Ga.)
78. Kimberly Young (Gilbert, Ariz.)
79. Sophie Keehan (Chandler, Ariz.)
84. Desirae Major (Broomfield, Colo.)
86T. Dana Kong (Princeton, N.J.)
86T. Joanna Lew (Durham, N.C.)
94. Gracie Stone (Chicago, Ill.)
98. Francesca Russo (Wayne, N.J.)
102. Allison Lee (Saddle River, N.J.)
104. Aziza Hassan (Brooklyn, N.Y.)
111. Celina Merza (Wayne, N.J.)
118. Riya Dave (Ardsley, N.Y.)

Absolute Fencing Gear® Korfanty Men’s Individual World Cup
74. Samuel Austin (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
75T. Michael Costin (Culver, Calif.)
75T. Benjamin Natanzon (Manalapan, N.J.)
77. Jeffrey Dalli (San Carlos, Calif.)
78. Peter Souders (Silver Spring, Md.)
79. Gabe Armijo (San Diego, Calif.)
85T. Sean Buckley (Secaucus, N.J.)
87. Marty Williams (Plainfield, N.J.)
89. Matthew Zich (New York City, N.Y.)
99. John Hallsten (Sacramento, Calif.)
102. Christofer Ahn (Houston, Texas)
106. Vincent Argenzio (Revere, Mass.)
107. Christopher Monti (Cary, Ill.)
108. Thomas Kolasa (Princeton, N.J.)
109. Calvin Liang (Phoenix, Ariz.)
117. Andrew Mackiewicz (Westwood, Mass.)
119. Kaito Streets (Redwood City, Calif.)
120. Bartosz Pukal (Evanston, Ill.)
124. Andrew Fischl (Huntington, N.Y.)
131. Geoffrey Loss (Laguna Beach, Calif.)
133. Donovan Deans (Tempe, Ariz.)
141. Ameen Borojerdi (Plantation, Fla.)
143T. Edward Chin (Livingston, N.J.)
149. Benjamin Marcus (Staten Island, N.Y.)
155. Evangelos Efstathiou (Cambridge, Mass.)