Men’s Fencing Clinches Share of Ivy League Title, Women Finish Second Behind Columbia

Harvard fencing wrapped up the Ivy League Championships with strong performances from both of its squads. The men’s team captured the conference championship, splitting a share of the title with the Colombia Lions. At the same time, the women fell just one point short of their own championship, finishing as runners-up after a thrilling 14-13 loss to Columbia in the finals.

Men’s Fencing

The Crimson (15-6) entered the Ivy League tournament after a 12-5 regular season with big dreams of bringing home the title. In the tournament, it dominated, tallying victories over Yale (19-8), Princeton (18-9), and Penn (16-11). Although the team fell to Columbia with a score of 17-10, it finished with a 3-1 overall tournament record, securing a share of the Ivy League Championship for the 14th time in program history. The title is the team’s first since 2024, and was backed largely by the foil squad’s successful 7-2 performance.

During the competition, four Crimson fencers earned All-Ivy League First Team honors.

Sophomores Colin Heathcock and Nicholas Zhang, who competed at the 2024 Paris Olympics for the United States and Canada, respectively, were honored with the accolade. Heathcock, competing in saber, posted a 10-2 record with a +24 indicator to nab first place. Zhang, in men’s epee, earned first place with a record of 10-2 and a +22 indicator.

The men’s saber group had a particularly noteworthy performance against Yale on the first day of competition, going 9-0 to sweep the Bulldogs.

Additionally, two other men earned All-Ivy First Team honors: Harry Lawson and Roy Graham. Lawson—a junior who has already been named to the All-Team squad twice—competed in epee, going 8-4 and finishing in third. Graham, a freshman who competes in foil, posted a 9-3 record with a +12 indicator and tied for second place in his Ivy League Championship debut.

Sophomore Andrew Chen earned All-Ivy Second Team Selection in men’s foil with a record of 7-5 and a sixth-place finish.

Women’s Fencing

After winning the outright Ivy League Championship last year, the Crimson entered the tournament this year with high hopes of defending its title. The women finished second in the tournament with a 5-1 record, earning wins over Cornell (17-10), Brown (21-6), Penn (23-4), Princeton (14-13), and Yale (20-7), but falling to the undefeated champion, Columbia.

In the championship match, the women dropped a close 14-13 decision to the Lions, losing the title despite their strong overall tournament performance.

Four women earned All-Ivy League First Team Honors for their successful regular seasons. Senior Zoe Kim finished in a second-place tie with a record of 21-5 with a +23 indicator in saber. Junior Kaitlin Park tied with Kim for second place with an identical score of 12-5 and a +21 indicator.

Two-time Olympian Jessica Guo, a junior, finished third in foil with a +50 indicator. The Toronto, Ont., native competed at both the 2024 Paris and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Guo also took home the individual Women’s Foil NCAA National Championship in 2024. Finally, sophomore Yasmine Khamis earned her honors with a 13-4 record and a +20 indicator in epee.

In her first year of collegiate fencing, Emily Jing earned Second-Team All-Ivy League after a 14-4 record and a +30 indicator.

The women began the tournament with a 17-10 win over Cornell, followed by a 21-6 victory over Brown, and ended with a 23-4 win over Penn. The Crimson entered the second day of competition with a pristine 3-0 record.

The title match against Colombia came down to the wire. The foil squad struck first, with Guo, Zhang, and Jing combining for a 4-5 edge, keeping Harvard close. In epee, the Crimson couldn’t gain ground, falling 4-5. It all came down to saber, and Harvard’s Kim, Pak, and Duckett fought hard to secure a 5-4 advantage. With the team score knotted at 13-13, the title hung in the balance on a single touch. When the final point was scored, Harvard had fallen just short, losing 14-13 in a heartbreaker.

After falling to the Lions, the Crimson rebounded with a 14-13 win against Princeton and finished with a 20-7 victory over Yale. While the team did not nab the title, it was still able to secure second place and a spot on the podium.

The men’s and women’s fencing teams will compete next at the NCAA Northeast Regional Championships in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., on March 8.

— Staff Writer Amelie N. Lima can be reached at [email protected].