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03/15/2022 12:00 AMThe Guilford fencing program capped off an undefeated season with the ultimate ending last week. After seeing three of its fencers win individual state titles, the Grizzlies’ girls’ and boys’ fencing teams both claimed state crowns by turning in excellent performances at the Team State Championships at North Haven High School on March 13.
Guilford’s fencing squads won their respective state titles by virtue of the cumulative performances of their épée, foil, and saber teams. The girls’ team finished first for foil, second in saber, and third in épée on its way to winning its seventh-straight state championship. The boys’ team placed first in saber, second in épée, and third for foil to finish in first overall and take back the state crown that it had last won in 2019.
On the heels of a historic showing, Head Coach Tara Bowers couldn’t feel prouder about the effort that both of her teams have put forth all season.
“I am so proud of the entire team for their efforts and performance at states,” Bowers said. “This team has some stars, but it also has a lot of depth. Our team has 55 student-athletes who trained hard all season. Twenty-four of them fenced in states. All of them were essential. That’s why I’m so proud of winning the overall state championship. It was a team effort.”
The Grizzlies set themselves up for success in the team state meet by fencing well at the Individual State Championships that took place at the Jewish Community Center in Woodbridge on March 5. Guilford had three athletes take home individual titles on the day. Athletes competed in five pool-play bouts in order to get seeded for the elimination bouts. The pool-play matches were 5-touch bouts, and the elimination matches were 15-touch bouts.
Senior captain saber team member Owen Angkatavanich and freshman foil team member Catherine Zhou each went undefeated at the meet. Angkatavanich finished 5-0 in pool play and then went 4-0 in the elimination round to claim a state title. Zhou was 5-0 in pool play and then went 5-0 in the elimination round to take first place in her tournament. Junior girls’ épée team member Melek Top also won a state title after going 3-2 in pool play and 5-0 in the elimination round of her bracket.
Angkatavanich has helped lead the charge for the Grizzlies as a senior captain this season. Bowers said that Angkatavanich’s effort on the saber strip has been nothing short of exceptional.
“I will miss all the seniors, but the one who will be the hardest to replace is Owen Angkatavanich,” said Bowers. “When I took the team over last year, I had very little experience coaching saber. Owen was not only my captain for two years, but he practically coached the team. He led footwork, drills, called timeouts. And he ended his high school fencing career in the best way possible, winning the individual state title and the team title. He really is the best saber fencer that Guilford has ever had.”
Aside from Guilford’s three first-place finishers, the Grizzlies saw junior Joy Qiang take second for the girls’ saber team at the Individual State Championship. Senior Jerry Li finish third for the boys’ saber team, senior captain Noah Provencher took fifth place for the boys’ épée squad, and sophomore Paul Greenleaf finished fifth for the boys’ foil team.
One week later, Guilford traveled to North Haven High School to participate in the Team State Championships. The girls’ foil team finished in first place at the meet, recording victories against Morgan (5-0) and Fairfield (5-1) to reach the final, where the Grizzlies notched a 5-4 win versus Waterford to take the title. The girls’ saber team finished in second place after earning wins over Fairfield (5-0) and Morgan (5-2) and then taking a 5-3 loss to Hand in the final. The girls’ épée team placed third after defeating both Fairfield and East Lyme by 5-3 scores, followed by a 5-0 loss against Hand.
The girls’ foil team featured Zhou, junior captain Taylor Smith, and fellow juniors Machi Merkle-Ward and Cassie Pringle. The fencers who competed for the girls’ saber team were Pringle, Qiang, senior captain Lucia Rusconi, and senior Kat Libby. The girls’ épée team featured Top, fellow junior Riley Weed, senior Catie Pena, and sophomore Flora Zhang.
This marked the seventh-straight state championship for the Guilford girls’ fencing team. Bowers is already looking forward to seeing her squad back in action next season.
“There are a lot of fencers who will be returning next year, including two of the individual state champions in Catherine Zhou and Melek Top,” Bowers said. “Much of the team will continue to train in the offseason, and we will come back next year ready to fight for another title and show that Guilford is always a top competitor in Connecticut high school fencing.”
On the boys’ side, the Guilford saber team took first place, posting wins over Fairfield (5-0) and Hand (5-3) in the first two rounds, followed by 5-4 victory versus Hopkins in the championship match. Angkatavanich, Jerry Li, junior Shivai Kumar, and sophomore Jason Li competed for the team in the meet.
The boys’ épée team earned runner-up honors. Guilford defeated Simsbury (5-1) and East Lyme (5-0) before taking a 5-3 loss to Hand in the final. The athletes who fenced for the Grizzlies were Provencher, fellow senior captain AJ Raucci, senior David Crair, and senior Dan White.
The boys’ foil team finished in fifth place. Guilford took a 5-3 loss to Hopkins in its first match, but then bounced back with 5-2 victories against North Haven and Waterford. Senior captain Sands Pascucilla, juniors Ryan Lynch and Arya Nadgouda, and sophomore Paul Greenleaf represented the foil squad.
Along with their state titles, Guilford’s fencing teams both took first place at the Connecticut Coast Conference Championships this year. Coach Bowers described the 2022 season as an amazing campaign for her program and feels ecstatic about the fact the Guilford continued is tradition of excellence.
“I can’t say enough about how proud I am of this team,” said Coach Bowers. “They worked so hard for this moment, and they ended the season exactly where they deserved to be.”