Chan Highlights M. Fencing; Women Send Three to NCAAs

There was no fooling around in April for the Harvard fencing teams, as the Crimson began the month by placing four fencers in the NCAA Tournament en route to a 15th-place finish.

The hero of the weekend for Harvard was junior Greg Chan, who finished second in the men's foil division, making him a First Team All-American. Other qualifiers included sophomore Jill Katz (18th place, women's foil), junior co-captain Mallory Stewart (18th, women's epee) and sophomore Lee Scheffler (20th, sabre).

But it was Chang who brought the most excitement.

After a long round-robin session, only four men's foilers remained. Chang faced off against St. John's Brian Moroney in the semifinals and defeated him, 15-5. However, he couldn't do the same against Wayne State's Thorstein Becker in the finals, falling by a 15-2 count.

Chang's showing helped to ease the sting of a disappointing season for the men's team, which went winless in four Ivy League matches in stumbling to a 3-6 overall record.

Chang was also the only men's fencer to make First Team All-Ivy. Scheffler and captain Paul Baez (epee) made the Second Team.

The women's team fared better in the regular season, finishing 7-3 overall and 2-3 in the Ivies.

Harvard had some trouble early in the season, going 1-2 in a meet against Princeton, Columbia and Cornell. The Crimson was edged by the Tigers, 17-15, and blown out by the Lions, 21-11, before defeating the Big Red, 25-7.

After that, however, Harvard reeled off five straight wins, a streak that didn't stop until a 13-9 loss against Yale in late February to end the regular season.

But at the IFA Championships in the first week of March, the women's team tied for first place with Yale, and with the men's fourth-place finish, Harvard came in second overall.

Postseason awards went to many women fencers. Katz took First Team All-Ivy in the foil, followed by junior Sara Crasson and junior co-captain Brindsi Chan on the foil Second Team.

Harvard Sports Stats 1995-96

Women's Fencing

Record: 7-3, 2-3 Ivy

Ivy Finish: Fourth (tie)

Head Coach: Bradomir Zivkovic

Captains: Mallory Steward '97, Brindsi Chan '97

Other Key Players: Jill Katz '98, Sara Crasson '97

Harvard Sports Stats 1995-96

Men's Fencing

Record: 3-6, 0-4 Ivy

Ivy Finish: Fifth

Head Coach: Bradomir Zivkovic

Captains: Paul Baez '96

Other Key Players: Greg Chang '97, Lee Scheffler '98