As night fell on Jan. 30 at the Hand High School gym, the spotlight of the Tigers' fencing squad began to focus on recognition with its Senior Night prior to hosting Old Lyme. While the main theme of the night may have been one of reflection upon the accomplishments and contributions of a quartet of seniors for Hand, the collective eye of the Tigers was set on the future of the current campaign and preparing for the state championships in early March. Hand set the groundwork for postseason preparation with strong performances in several bouts against Old Lyme, including the foil boys' and girls' groups winning a combined 14 of 18 bouts.

"It looks promising heading into states, hopefully we finish better than last season at seventh," said captain John Morgan, who is a senior for the Tigers, along with Amy Salerno, Eileen Creaser, and Spencer Sabo. "A lot of us have been getting practice both in and out of school, and it is showing with our wins this season. I feel overall, we have a pretty strong team, and the key for states will be coming out strong, along with being smart with our fencing. If we fence smart, then we can beat some of the better teams we have already seen this season."

Morgan was a member of the boys' foil squad, which had several impressive performances on the night. Along with victories from Sabo, Morgan's trio of bouts within the discipline included a clean sweep of opponents from North Branford, which also had a few representatives in the meet, en route to a 15-2 total point performance. Junior captain Griffin McShane was also undefeated in his three foil bouts, winning them by a combined score of 15-2 as well. It was a total squad that scored eight victories in nine matches, and also a unit that its coach feels has things very much in control for a state crown.

"For the boys, I've never really had to worry about them or keep an eye out," said Head Coach Sarah Lam on her dominant squad. "They have always been pretty strong and know what to do out there. They are also very good at coaching each other, along with rebounding and supporting the team. At this point in the season, they do not need much attention from me, they know what's going on and just do it."

In even further praise of her self-aware squad, Lam feels it would be a scare if the boys were not at this level of focus and dedication by this juncture of the campaign.

"I'd honestly be nervous if they weren't at this level of play for this part of the season," said Lam. "They get lessons from me and elsewhere, so it's really nice to have such a self-sufficient team, along with the girls. They know what is going on heading into states, and they should do just fine. I have no worries for the future; they have all come a long way."

Not to be outdone, the girls' foil team also fought valiantly in its bouts as it earned six victories in nine matchups. The girls were led by captains Salerno and Creaser with the duo combining for three of the Tigers' six pack of wins.

"It felt great to have the whole team support us tonight as seniors, which was something we had been looking forward to since freshman year," said Creaser, who also won a bout by earning four straight points after a 1-0 deficit. "It has also been great to have everyone here to support us, along with helping our younger teammates tonight. With everyone, including parents, here, we just wanted to show what we were made of to our supporters. They key for states will just be staying calm and remembering what we worked for all season long. We have great teamwork on and off the floor."

Additional victories were earned by junior Katherine Nichols, along with Salerno and Creaser taking consecutive sweeps in wins at one point in the matchup. It is a group that Lam feels has made some significant progress and is ready for the next level of competition.

"They had great point and distance control tonight and were pretty successful," said Lam on the girls' slate. "I don't know all the schools registered for the state tournament, but we will probably make the top 10 of both the boys' and girls' ranks; they are all excited for it."