WALTHAM, Mass. – The Brandeis University women's fencing team swept a pair of home matches tonight as the Judges avenged an earlier loss with a 17-10 win over Wellesley, then defeated Tufts for the second time this season, 22-5. With the wins, the Judges improve to 15-10 on the season. Wellesley falls to 17-7, Tufts to 4-5.
In the opener, the Judges raced to an 8-1 lead thanks to the sabre squad, with rookies Jessica Morales (Wilmington, Mass./Wilmington) and Maggie Shealy (Chapel Hill, N.C./East Chapel Hill) each going 3-0 and junior Devon Brown (Concord, Mass./Concord-Carlisle) going 2-1.
The teams split 5-4 decisions in the other two weapons, with Brandeis taking foil and Wellesley winning epee. Rookie foil fencer Samantha Shortall (Norwell, Mass./Norwell), fresh off winning University Athletic Association Women's Fencer of the Week honors, went 3-0, while senior Jessica Gets (Morganville, N.J. / Freehold Township) was 2-1. In epee, Brandeis junior Madeleine Vibert (Las Vegas, Nev. / West Career and Tech. Academy) posted a 2-1 record for the Judges, with rookie Alex Wicken (Norwich, Conn./Norwich Free Academy) clinching the victory, 5-1, for his only point of the match.
Against Tufts, it was the foil squad who posted the biggest win, sweeping all nine bouts. In addition to Gets and Shortall, rookie Ivana Zavalla (E. Setauket, N.Y./Ward-Melville) also went 3-0. The sabre squad earned a 7-2 win, with Morales and Shealy each picking up two more wins, as Tufts was shorthanded in the weapon. Epee's 6-3 victory saw Vibert go 3-0, junior Jess Spear (Spofford, N.H. / Keene) got 2-1 and rookie Paula Thornton (Marietta, Ga. / Campbell) pick up the match-clinching victory.
Brandeis will return to action this weekend when the Judges host nine other schools, both men's and women's teams, in the annual Eric Sollee Invitational, starting February 1st at 9 a.m.