Men vs. Vassar 1 | Men vs. Vassar 2 | Women vs. Vassar | Women vs. Lafayette

MADISON, N.J. (Jan. 31, 2015) – The Drew University men's and women's fencing teams saw their first action at home on Saturday as the men took on Vassar College and the women welcomed Vassar and Lafayette College. The women fell to Vassar, 17-10, and to Lafayette, 17-9. The men dropped two decisions to Vassar, 20-7 and 21-6.
 
On the women's side, the Rangers again flashed its bright future as a pair of Drew newcomers went 6-0 against Lafayette on Saturday. In the sabre competition, freshman Natalia Dashnaw won all three of her bouts with a 5-0 score in touches to help the sabre squad top Lafayette 5-3. Freshman Lauren Gonnelli paced the Rangers in the epee discipline with three victories (5-4, 4-3, 5-2), but the Leopards won epee 5-4. A 9-0 triumph in the foil gave Lafayette the 17-9 win.
 
Dashnaw continued to impress against Vassar with a 2-1 showing in sabre. She won her first two bouts, 5-1 and 5-0, before getting just out-touched 5-3 in her final duel against Vassar. Junior Sarah Silvestri added a 5-3 win as the Rangers dropped sabre to Vassar, 6-3. Sophomore Kelsey Oeler picked up two wins (5-3, 5-0) in the foil competition before Vassar edged Drew 5-4 in the weapon. A 6-3 victory by Vassar in epee aided a 17-10 overall victory.
 
The men were led by senior Sean McAuliffe, who went 5-1 in epee against Vassar in two separate team duels on Saturday. In the first round, the team captain was a perfect 3-0 (5-0, 5-3, 5-4), but Vassar withstood the Rangers for a 5-4 win in the weapon. Senior Mark Lessner picked up two wins (5-3, 5-2) in sabre before Drew dropped a 6-3 decision. Vassar went 9-0 in foil for the 20-7 overall win.
 
McAuliffe stayed hot in Round 2 with two wins (3-2, 5-4) and a close 5-4 loss in epee. Senior Jhon Orozco scored a 5-3 victory before Vassar won epee 6-3. Newcomer Tian Hao Xu picked up the first victory of his collegiate career, 5-2, in the final bout in the foil competition. Vassar, however, won foil 8-1 and sabre 7-2 for its second victory (21-6) over Drew on the day.
 
The men return to the strips on Sunday, Feb. 8 for the MACFA Group A vs. C round robin at Johns Hopkins University. The women are next scheduled for the EWFC Championships on Sunday, Feb. 15 at Stevens Institute of Technology.