After last year's somewhat discouraging rebuilding season, the Tufts women's fencing team looks to improve this year, boasting a talented group of returning players as well as some promising newcomers. Despite the loss of senior Annmarie Cholankeril, who qualified for the national tournament and was one of the bright spots on last year's squad, the team feels confident heading into the season.
"We have a lot of good athletes," coach Jason Sachs said. "If they continue to work hard, anything is possible."
The team will be looking toward lone senior Amy Dickinson and a talented crew of underclassmen, including foil captain Kim Harbin, to carry the team. "We're going to have to look to our sophomores a lot this season," Sachs said.
The outlook for this season could not be more encouraging after the team's first meet last Saturday. The Jumbos went 4-0, taking down a skilled Boston College team along the way. The team went 15-12 against BC, beating the Eagles for the first time in two years. It also defeated a very capable Wellesley squad by the same score. Also falling to the Jumbos were Johns Hopkins and Army, both by a tally of 17-10. Although less surprising, the victories over Johns Hopkins and Army remain encouraging.
The inaugural meet featured a number of solid performances by new team members and veterans alike. Sophomores Elisabeth Gruender and Mika Mutoh both turned in dominating performances at the meet. Greunder went 9-1 in foil competition, while Mutoh went a convincing 7-3 in the more aggressive sabre competition. Freshman Emily Finn was also impressive in her first collegiate meet, going 7-3 against formidable foil opposition.
Also heartening for the Jumbos was the play of Dickinson. She went 11-1 against epee competition from the three teams. This signifies a promising start to the season for Dickinson, who experienced a slightly disappointing season last year. As the lone senior on the team, Dickinson looks to have a successful final season with the team, as well as fill the shoes of Cholankeril and minimize the effect of her loss.
Last weekend's meet proved a good barometer after last season. Although the team expected some improvement after rebuilding last season, such a dramatic turnaround was somewhat surprising.
"Our progress was quicker than we expected," Sachs said. The team is more familiar with each other, as well as with the sport. The return of the sophomores, along with Dickinson's impressive start should bode well for the team.
However, Sachs remains cautious in his outlook for the season simply based on last week's meet. Though the competition was tough against Boston College and Wellesley, the true test will come next weekend. On Saturday the team travels to MIT for a conference meet. There it will face some of its toughest competition of the season in Harvard, Brown, MIT, and Brandeis.
"Even though last weekend was very encouraging," Sachs cautioned, "next weekend should tell us a lot about how the season will go."
The team feels it can be competitive and is setting high goals for the season. The Jumbos look to repeat the success of the 1998-99 team, which won the New England region. Sachs feels that the team has a reasonable chance of accomplishing this goal. "Once again," he said, "this weekend's meet will be key."
In individual play, the team hopes to match and even surpass the accomplishments of last season, and send one or more fencers to the national meet. Amy Dickinson likely has the most realistic shot at this goal, based on her strong start and her play in last year's individual tournament. Despite finishing very well in last season's New England Individual meet, Dickinson did not see the Nationals as a result of a sub-par regular season. Sachs also feels confident that both Mutoh and Gruender have an outside chance at Nationals.
If nothing else, the attitude of this year's team will carry it far. In its fourth year as a varsity program, the squad is taking the sport more seriously this season, and is also having more fun.
"It's very enjoyable to coach [the team]," Sachs said. "I have great confidence in our abilities." The combination of this improved attitude, along with experience and skill, should spell success for the 2000-01 fencing season.
