Friday, March 22
Columbus, Ohio
Columbia University
vs
NCAA Championships (Women Day 2)
Photo by: Ricky Bassman
Five Women Earn All-America Status; Fencing Remains in Second at NCAA Championships
3/22/2024 5:48:00 PM | Fencing
Oxenreider, Kong reach knockout rounds, AND strong all-around day keeps the Lions in the running for the team title
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Five Columbia women's fencers picked up All-America honors, and the Lions remain in second place in the team competition halfway through the 2024 NCAA Championships, hosted by Ohio State University. Sophomore Tierna Oxenreider was the runner-up in epee, and senior Vera Kong tied for third in sabre for first-team All-America accolades. The trio of Evelyn Cheng (foil), Tamar Gordon (sabre) and Mina Yamanaka (epee) all earned a spot on the second team after top-eight finishes.
Columbia (81 points) trimmed its deficit to six against first-place Harvard. Notre Dame sits in third with 73 points.
"I can't say enough about the performance of our entire women's squad," said head coach Michael Aufrichtig. "We had more top-eight finishes than any team in the country, which we are very proud of. Tierna and Vera were outstanding and are well-deserving of their first team recognition. I'm really happy for Evelyn, Tamar and Mina, who competed well all weekend, and proud of how Rachael finished today as well. They did exactly what we needed them to do to keep up in team points, so I'm looking forward to the men starting strong tomorrow."
Oxenreider earned her second consecutive All-America finish after a seventh-place finish in 2023. The Reynoldsburg, Ohio, native used a 4-0 mark in round four and only needed one more victory in the final preliminary round to advance to the semifinals.
On the main stage, Oxenreider defeated top-seeded Ketki Ketkar from Cornell. After a quiet start by both fencers in the first period, Oxenreider began to pull away in the second frame and sealed the deal with a 15-7 win in the third to clinch her spot in the championship bout. There, she faced another Ivy League opponent in Harvard's Emily Vermeule and kept things close going into the third period, but Vermeule pulled away late and won the match, 15-10.
Kong posted a 4-0 mark in round four and split her final round-robin bouts in the morning to clinch the No. 3 seed and first-team All-America honors. She met up with Brandeis' Maggie Shealy in the last semifinal matchup of the day, and despite a hard-fought bout, Shealy came out on top, 15-9.
Gordon closed the preliminaries with four consecutive victories and tied for the fourth most wins but fell short of advancing by three indicator points. Yamanaka won three bouts Friday to place eighth for the first All-America honors of her career.
Cheng 3-1 in round four and 3-1 in round five to complete the tournament with a 15-8 record for a fifth-place finish. Rachael Kim closed out her first NCAA Championships by going 4-4 on the day and finished in 20th place.
The men's competition opens up on Saturday, March 23, in French Field House. Epee starts the action at 9 a.m., followed by the opening rounds of foil at 11 a.m. and sabre at 1:30 p.m. Fans can catch the action live on OhioStateBuckeyes.com
For the latest on Columbia's fencing programs, follow @CULionsFencing on Twitter and Instagram and the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
FINAL INDIVIDUAL STANDINGS
Women's Epee
2. Tierna Oxenreider (16-7, +25 Ind.)
8. Mina Yamanaka (12-9, +5 Ind.)
Women's Foil
5. Evelyn Cheng (15-8, +24 Ind.)
20. Rachael Kim (8-15, -14 Ind.)
Women's Sabre
T3. Vera Kong (16-7, +31 Ind.)
6. Tamar Gordon (14-9, +14 Ind.)
Columbia (81 points) trimmed its deficit to six against first-place Harvard. Notre Dame sits in third with 73 points.
"I can't say enough about the performance of our entire women's squad," said head coach Michael Aufrichtig. "We had more top-eight finishes than any team in the country, which we are very proud of. Tierna and Vera were outstanding and are well-deserving of their first team recognition. I'm really happy for Evelyn, Tamar and Mina, who competed well all weekend, and proud of how Rachael finished today as well. They did exactly what we needed them to do to keep up in team points, so I'm looking forward to the men starting strong tomorrow."
Oxenreider earned her second consecutive All-America finish after a seventh-place finish in 2023. The Reynoldsburg, Ohio, native used a 4-0 mark in round four and only needed one more victory in the final preliminary round to advance to the semifinals.
On the main stage, Oxenreider defeated top-seeded Ketki Ketkar from Cornell. After a quiet start by both fencers in the first period, Oxenreider began to pull away in the second frame and sealed the deal with a 15-7 win in the third to clinch her spot in the championship bout. There, she faced another Ivy League opponent in Harvard's Emily Vermeule and kept things close going into the third period, but Vermeule pulled away late and won the match, 15-10.
Kong posted a 4-0 mark in round four and split her final round-robin bouts in the morning to clinch the No. 3 seed and first-team All-America honors. She met up with Brandeis' Maggie Shealy in the last semifinal matchup of the day, and despite a hard-fought bout, Shealy came out on top, 15-9.
Gordon closed the preliminaries with four consecutive victories and tied for the fourth most wins but fell short of advancing by three indicator points. Yamanaka won three bouts Friday to place eighth for the first All-America honors of her career.
Cheng 3-1 in round four and 3-1 in round five to complete the tournament with a 15-8 record for a fifth-place finish. Rachael Kim closed out her first NCAA Championships by going 4-4 on the day and finished in 20th place.
The men's competition opens up on Saturday, March 23, in French Field House. Epee starts the action at 9 a.m., followed by the opening rounds of foil at 11 a.m. and sabre at 1:30 p.m. Fans can catch the action live on OhioStateBuckeyes.com
For the latest on Columbia's fencing programs, follow @CULionsFencing on Twitter and Instagram and the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
FINAL INDIVIDUAL STANDINGS
Women's Epee
2. Tierna Oxenreider (16-7, +25 Ind.)
8. Mina Yamanaka (12-9, +5 Ind.)
Women's Foil
5. Evelyn Cheng (15-8, +24 Ind.)
20. Rachael Kim (8-15, -14 Ind.)
Women's Sabre
T3. Vera Kong (16-7, +31 Ind.)
6. Tamar Gordon (14-9, +14 Ind.)
Players Mentioned
FOIL
/ Fencing
SABRE
/ Fencing
FOIL
/ Fencing
SABRE
/ Fencing
EPEE
/ Fencing
EPEE
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