RDFC Pre-Season Invitational Tournament 2014

The Harrison Fencing Club has been invited by the Lowell High School Red Devil Fencing club to compete in the RDFC Pre-Season Invitational on Saturday, November 8. The tournament will be held at the Lowell Middle School Gym in Lowell, Indiana, and events start at 8:00 am.

Given the relatively short distance for travel and small field of competition, this event is ideal for beginning fencers who want to a “taste” of what competitive fencing is like. Yet, it will still be a challenge for returning fencers. The schools in the Great Lakes Conference have always trained tough, smart fencers. If you are considering competitive fencing but are unsure, talk to Coach about your interests and concerns.

There is a fee for competitors but no charge for spectators. The cost will be $20 per fencer per weapon fenced. Also, this tournament will require foil bibs (on masks) for foil fencers. If you do not have a mask with a foil bib, don’t worry. We will discuss an inexpensive option at practice along with any other equipment requirements.

I will be asking for parent volunteers to help with transportation. For those of you who will not be competing, you can tag along to support your teammates as long as we have enough room for those fencing and their equipment. I should have a better idea of how many seats we’ll have available by the week of the tournament. Bring snacks, beverages (lots of water!), and a lunch or cash for concessions.

If you know that you’re ready to participate, you can get registered for the tournament by going to the AskFRED site. The tournament link is https://askfred.net/Events/moreInfo.php?tournament_id=28059. If you don’t have a membership to AskFRED (it’s free) , read our post, Getting Ready for Competitive Fencing, to learn how to register for a membership.

Upcoming Tournament: RDFC Invitational

Our next tournament that we will attend as a club will be the Red Devil Fencing Club Invitational. This event is scheduled for Saturday, February 22. The Red Devil Fencing Club originates from Lowell High School, however the tournament will be located at the Lowell Middle School Gym.

Please note that if you intend to participate in this event, pre-registration is required on AskFRED–go to http://askfred.net/Events/moreInfo.php?tournament_id=25255. The deadline to pre-register is February 16, 2014. A signed permission slip is also required to travel with the team on the bus (see attached). The permission slip must be turned into me or the Club Secretary by Friday, February 21, 2014.

As always, if you have any questions, just let me know. We’ve made some impact at our last few events, and I’m looking forward to seeing all of you fence at the RDFC Invitational.

Download Required Permission Form

New Tournament – RDFC Invitational

We have a change in our tournament schedule for this season. Instead of participating at the Indiana Middle and High School Championship scheduled for February 22, we will be going to the RDFC Invitational in Lowell. I’ve made the change to the Events page as well as to the Calendar. Please note the change in your personal calendars.

UPDATE: The entry fee will be $20 per fencer per weapon.

The RDFC Invitational is open only to the following high school teams: Red Devil Fencing Club (Lowell HS), Marian Catholic HS (Chicago Heights, IL), Homewood-Flossmoor HS (Homewood, IL), University of Chicago Laboratory Schools (Chicago, IL), Harrison HS, West Lafayette HS Fencing Club, and Northwest Indiana Fencing Club (St. John, IN). This is another ideal tournament for us as a club since there will be a good number of fencers participating but not so large that our heads will be spinning!

At the beginning of February, I will distribute the participation/permission forms for this tournament. If you intend to compete, you can let me know well in advance so that I can make the appropriate arrangements for equipment and transportation.

Tournament and Meet Schedule 2014

South Korea’s Jiyeon Kim celebrates winning against Russia’s Sofya Velikaya at the end of their women’s sabre individual gold medal fencing match at the ExCel venue during the London 2012 Olympic Games August 1, 2012.
Credit: Reuters/Max Rossi

Happy New Year!

With the start of a new calendar year, we are now entering the competition season for high school fencing. I’ve pulled together a short list of competitions for our fencing club. Prior to each event, I will send out a sign-up sheet for the upcoming tournament with key information. If you plan to compete at an event, I will need you to return the sheet with the information requested so that I can make the appropriate arrangements for equipment and transportation.

I’m excited about competition season, and I’m looking forward to seeing how each of you will do this year! As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.

Harrison High School Fencing Club
Fencing Meets and Tournaments 2013-2014

JANUARY

Jan 11 – Midwest High School Open
HHSFC will not be attending this event as a team–this is an optional event open to individual fencers
Steinbrenner Athletic Center
Culver Academies
1300 Academy Rd., Culver IN 46511
Pre-registration is required, $25 per fencer
See details at http://askfred.net/Events/moreInfo.php?tournament_id=24330

Jan 18 – Great Lakes Junior Varsity Championships
(A Harrison athletic bus has been reserved for this event)
Marian Central Catholic HS
1001 McHenry Ave., Woodstock, IL  60098
Pre-registration is required, $20 per fencer
See details at http://askfred.net/Events/moreInfo.php?tournament_id=24586

FEBRUARY

Feb 1 – (Tentative) HHSFC vs. West Lafayette HS Fencing Club
West Lafayette Jr/Sr High School
Pre-registration is required, no cost to Harrison fencers

Feb 8 – St. Valentine Massacre USFA Sectional Event
HHSFC will not be attending this event as a team–this is an optional event open to individual fencers
Culver High School Gym
Culver Academies
1300 Academy Rd., Culver IN 46511
USFA Membership required (can be purchased at the venue if you are not a current USFA member)
Foilists – conductive bib will be required
Entry fee – $20 per event, late fees $25 per event
Close of registration will be 15 minutes before the start of the event
See details at http://askfred.net/Events/moreInfo.php?tournament_id=24584

Feb 22 – Indiana Middle and High School Championship
Steinbrenner Athletic Center
Culver Academies
1300 Academy Rd., Culver IN 46511
Pre-registration is required, $25 per fencer
See details at http://askfred.net/Events/moreInfo.php?tournament_id=25038

MARCH

TBD – Red Devil Fencing Club Tournament
Lowell High School, Lowell, IN
As soon as the date is finalized, I will pass on the information.

TBD – West Lafayette Rumble
As soon as the date and location are finalized, I will pass on the information.

Results: Harrison-Lowell Dual Meet

We had a great time in St. John today! Though we were small in numbers, everyone fenced well. Neither team had enough epee fencers, so it was just mixed foil and mixed saber. Our thanks to the Lowell HS Red Devils for inviting us to come, and thanks to the Northwest Indiana Fencing Club for hosting our friendly match.

My apologies for not posting any saber results (only because we did not have any Harrison saberists represented in the meet). Our Harrison fencers did well: Jack Stuckey got second place after a well fought bout, only to lose by one touch. Sarah Motley tied for third. Jacob Banes finished in fifth place. All a good showing considering we were facing some varsity level fencers! Lowell fielded a tough team, and it was a great opportunity to face them on the strip.

When we go to these events, I hear from others how impressed they are with all of you. You’ve learned a great deal in a relatively short amount of time, so you should be proud of yourselves. It’s rewarding to me as a coach to see all of you doing well AND enjoying your time while fencing. I couldn’t ask for anything more. I’m looking forward to the new season!

Dual Meet: Lowell HS Red Devils

We have been invited to a dual meet with the fencers of the Lowell High School Red Devils. The date has been set for Saturday, August 3, most likely starting in the morning. We don’t have a set time yet, but as soon as we have one, I will pass on the information. This is a good opportunity for fencers all skill levels and weapons to fence someone else besides your teammates. There is a good possibility that we can also borrow some electric equipment, so I will just need to know if you are interested and will attend so that I can make the arrangements for equipment.

 

The meet will actually be hosted by the Northwest Indiana Fencing Club in St. John, Indiana. I would suggest carpooling since it is over an hour away for us. There are some detailed directions at the club’s website, so be sure to read those prior to leaving for the meet: http://nwifencingclub.com/4201.html.

 

Please contact me by Friday, July 19 if you plan to attend. You can contact me via phone, text message, Facebook, email or comment to this post. As always, if you have any questions, just let me know.

Final Results: Red Devil JV Invitational

Lowell High School’s Red Devil Fencing Club hosted a 3-blade JV tournament on Saturday, April 27 for students between the ages of 12 and 19 in their first or second year of fencing only. The pools for foil and sabre were quite full for beginning fencers, so it was a pleasant surprise to see so many fencers there! We saw teams and individual fencers from Marian Catholic High School (Chicago Heights, IL), Escrime du Lac (Mishawaka, IN), Tinley Park Fencing Club (Tinley Park, IL), Northwest Indiana Fencing Club (St. John, IN), Homewood-Flossmoor High School Fencing Club (Flossmoor, IL), and of course the Red Devil Fencing Club (Lowell, IN). HHSFC had four entrants in the tournament (listed here in alphabetical order): Jacob Banes (Men’s Foil), Jacob Ginn (Men’s Foil), Sarah Motley (Women’s Foil), and Greg O’Connor (Men’s Sabre).

I was impressed with all of our fencers! Tournament competition can be personally intense at times, testing your physical abilities, emotional control and mental acuity all at the same time. Everyone represented Harrison well, both in character and results! Jacob Banes took first place in Men’s Foil, going undefeated through the entire preliminary round-robin round. Sarah Motley took first place in Women’s Foil, fencing one of the longest direct-elimination bouts in her fencing career to date. Greg O’Connor took third place in Men’s Sabre, an impressive feat considering that he joined the club well after we started and didn’t start with sabre until recently. Congratulations! And a special thanks goes to Jack Stuckey who supported his teammates with cheers, strategy and equipment. Additional thanks go out to the West Lafayette Jr/Sr High School Fencing Club and the Red Devil Fencing Club for loaning us some electric equipment so that our fencers could compete!

Official results can be viewed at askFRED – http://askfred.net/Results/results.php?tournament_id=21923