On Saturday, Feb. 28, and Sunday, March 1, students competed at the Minnesota State High School Fencing Championship. Both the women’s and the men’s teams took home first in the overall team standings, which is calculated based on the scores of the individual competitors.
Two students also emerged as individual state champions on March 1: Captain Stella Wyatt ‘27 won the women’s epee award, and Captain Jeffrey Chen ‘26 won the men’s saber award for the second year in a row. Chen is undefeated in his past two seasons.
On the women’s side, other individual medalists included Madeleine Hou ‘26 and Alessandra Duda ‘28, receiving second and third, respectively, in women’s saber. Samuel Morris ‘29 received second in men’s epee, and Luca Racciatti ‘27 received third in men’s saber. Fencers also won men’s and women’s saber, received second in women’s epee and third in men’s epee, and fourth in women’s foil and sixth in men’s foil regarding the team relays that took place on Feb. 28.
Wyatt said that although there are individual aspects to the sport, a key factor in the team’s success is the way team members support and motivate each other. “It feels like a positive environment when [we] go to tournament[s], and that motivates you to do good for your team aside from doing good for your own personal benefit,” added Wyatt.
This team chemistry is on display every year at the state tournament. “For state, we always draw smiley faces with Sharpies on our hands to remind ourselves of the number one team rule, which is to have fun,” said Wyatt.
The state tournament serves as a culmination of the hard work and dedication that the fencers have been putting in over the past few months or even years. Although nine seniors are graduating, the team is well-positioned for continued success in future seasons.
