The results continue to pour in for Encinitas Fencing Academy. Several fencers participated in the Men’s and Women’s Open Epee tournament, and all came back with excellent results.
Eowyn Acres participated in the Women’s Senior Epee alongside the full squads from UCSD and Wellesley college. She came out incredibly strong in the pools, notching 4 victories before her first loss, for a record of 4-1. Placing 5th going into the DE rounds, she earned a Bye in the round of 32 and wound up with a favorable matchup in the 16. She fenced hard and steadily increased her lead throughout her first DE, and won handily with a score of 15-10. Her bout in the round of 8 was against UCSD’s Emma Zmurk, who knocked Eowyn out and went on to win the tournament. Eowyn placed 6th overall, and earned her D2018.
Coach David “Lucky” Polakoski, Roark Harris, and Doug Taylor all participated in the Men’s event, in which the UCSD Men’s Squad also participated. Roark had a short day, but was able to secure 2 victories in pools against fencers who had previously defeated him.
Doug had a slow start in pools, but managed to pick up some momentum in the DEs. With a 2-4 record out of pools, he seeded 18th going in to the second round. In the round of 32, after trading scores through the first period, he began to steady himself and secured a 15-13 victory. In the round of 16, he faced the 2nd-seeded fencer. Down just a few touches at the end of the first and second periods, he managed to bring the 12-14 score to 14-14 in the third period. The fencing was tense, and after a double-touch, another double-touch, a third double-touch, and two more double-touches, Doug scored a single light, defeating his opponent 15-14, and entering the round of 8. He stormed out to an early 6-touch lead, but fatigue and adjustments by his opponent caused the lead to dwindle until the two were trading scores to keep the match close. Doug fought through to the third period, and came back from 12-14 a second time to force overtime. He was ultimately defeated in priority, but placed 8th in the tournament, earning his C2018 rating.
Lucky also faced some adversity coming into the day, with sore legs and an upset stomach. He put together a 4-2 record in the pools, which was not enough for a bye, but good for a 9th-place seed. His first match in the round of 32 allowed a chance to find his rhythm, overcoming his opponent 15-6. He faced a very difficult match in the round of 16, against a UCSD fencer, but fenced smartly and won 12-7 on time. He faced the 1st-place seed in the round of 8, and came out with an early lead. The match was close through all three periods, but fatigue got the better of Lucky, and he fell 13-15. He placed 7th in the tournament.
Our fencers set out to practice specific techniques and strategies that they have been working studiously on in practice, and they were rewarded greatly for their efforts. A steadfast focus on executing techniques correctly and setting up good situations, rather than focusing on the score, led everyone to achieve results that they had not expected. Congratulations, all!
All fencers earn points toward the San Diego Senior Cup. Lucky is currently in 1st place in the Senior Points list, while Doug and Eowyn make their debuts on their respective lists.
Full results can be seen on AskFRED.net. You can find the points lists here: Men’s & Women’s.
