Saturday, February 12
Durham, N.C.
All Day
North Carolina
at
Duke Duals (Men)
Photo by: Dana Gentry
Fencing Walks Away With Winning Record At Duke Duals
February 15, 2022 | Fencing
Durham, N.C. - The North Carolina fencing team competed at the Duke Duals last weekend. The Tar Heels fenced in four bouts each day, finishing with a 5-3 overall record.
The ninth-ranked men's team won three of the four competitions. The Tar Heels faced conference rival Boston College in round one and held a 10-8 advantage leading into the final weapon group, however, a late surge by the Eagles saw them win the dual, 14-13.
After a second-round bye, Carolina faced Johns Hopkins and this time got off to a slow start, before the Tar Heels fought back in full force, eventually pulling away and winning the match 18-9.
The Tar Heels then made easy work of division three Brandeis, 20-7. In the final round of the day, the men's dominance in foil set them up with a landslide win over Air Force, 17-10.
Freshman Eli Lippman was a standout in men's epee posting a perfect 7-0 in his bouts on Saturday, a run that included three wins each over Boston College and Brandeis and one win against Air Force.
The No. 14 Carolina women's team hit the strips on Sunday, finishing the day with a 2-2 record. The first two rounds couldn't have been closer matches, each being decided in the final bouts. The Heels came out on top in the first round against Boston College. With the match tied at 13-13, Carolina's hopes at a victory lay on the shoulders of Iman Tucker. The freshman was able to come up clutch when her number was called, winning the bout and the match.
The third-round match against No. 9 Temple also came down to the final bout. After Carolina surged out to an early lead in epee and foil, Temple roared back in sabre and snatched the win away from the Heels in the final bout, 14-13.
UNC head coach Matt Jednak said that these high-intensity moments are what the team has been training for all season.
"We've talked a lot in the last few weeks about two things: face the challenge in front of you and show up for the moment. That means that we are not backing down no matter what. Overall, our team did a great job of that this weekend," said Jednak.
The Tar Heels were able to bounce back in round four with style, starting their match against No. 15 Brandeis on a 17-1 run through foil and epee, and maintained their advantage to win the match, 20-7.
The final round saw the Heels face No. 7 Penn State. Carolina put up a strong fight but lost the match, 16-11.
Jednak and the rest of the coaching staff were proud of the effort and the intensity that both the men and women were able to bring.
"We came to fight this weekend and were able to execute our plan. It's the exact type of meet you want to have to go into championships," said Jednak.
The Duke Duals were Carolina's last regular-season match of the season. The conclusion of the regular season shifts the focus of the team and the coaching staff towards the postseason.
"Our goal is to qualify the maximum number of people we can for the NCAA Championships, which is two fencers per weapon per gender," said Jednak.
To do that, the Tar Heels need to put together quality results at their next match, the ACC Championships that will take place on February 26th and 27th at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham.
Results
Day One
Men's Competition
Round One
No. 9 UNC vs Boston College
Foil: 5-4 BC
Epee: 6-3 UNC
Sabre: 6-3 BC
Final: 14-13 Boston College
Round Two
Bye
Round Three
No. 9 UNC vs Johns Hopkins
Sabre: 7-2 UNC
Foil: 5-4 UNC
Epee: 6-3 UNC
Final: 18-9
Round 4
No. 9 UNC vs Brandeis
Sabre: 5-4 UNC
Foil: 8-1 UNC
Epee: 7-2 UNC
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 20-7 UNC
Round 5
No. 9 UNC vs Air Force
Sabre: 5-4 Air Force
Foil: 8-1 UNC
Epee: 5-4 UNC
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 17-10 UNC
Day Two
Women's Competition
Round One
No. 14 UNC vs Boston College
Foil: 5-4 BC
Epee: 5-4 UNC
Sabre: 5-4 UNC
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 14-13 UNC
Round Two
Bye
Round Three
No. 14 UNC vs No. 9 Temple
Foil: 5-4 Temple
Epee: 5-4 UNC
Sabre: 5-4 Temple
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 14-13 Temple
Round Four
No. 14 UNC vs No. 15 Brandeis
Foil: 8-1 UNC
Epee: 9-0 UNC
Sabre: 6-3 Brandeis
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 20-7 UNC
Round Five
No. 14 UNC vs No. 7 Penn State
Foil: 5-4 Penn State
Epee: 7-2 Penn State
Sabre: 5-4 UNC
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 16-11 Penn State
The ninth-ranked men's team won three of the four competitions. The Tar Heels faced conference rival Boston College in round one and held a 10-8 advantage leading into the final weapon group, however, a late surge by the Eagles saw them win the dual, 14-13.
After a second-round bye, Carolina faced Johns Hopkins and this time got off to a slow start, before the Tar Heels fought back in full force, eventually pulling away and winning the match 18-9.
The Tar Heels then made easy work of division three Brandeis, 20-7. In the final round of the day, the men's dominance in foil set them up with a landslide win over Air Force, 17-10.
Freshman Eli Lippman was a standout in men's epee posting a perfect 7-0 in his bouts on Saturday, a run that included three wins each over Boston College and Brandeis and one win against Air Force.
The No. 14 Carolina women's team hit the strips on Sunday, finishing the day with a 2-2 record. The first two rounds couldn't have been closer matches, each being decided in the final bouts. The Heels came out on top in the first round against Boston College. With the match tied at 13-13, Carolina's hopes at a victory lay on the shoulders of Iman Tucker. The freshman was able to come up clutch when her number was called, winning the bout and the match.
The third-round match against No. 9 Temple also came down to the final bout. After Carolina surged out to an early lead in epee and foil, Temple roared back in sabre and snatched the win away from the Heels in the final bout, 14-13.
UNC head coach Matt Jednak said that these high-intensity moments are what the team has been training for all season.
"We've talked a lot in the last few weeks about two things: face the challenge in front of you and show up for the moment. That means that we are not backing down no matter what. Overall, our team did a great job of that this weekend," said Jednak.
The Tar Heels were able to bounce back in round four with style, starting their match against No. 15 Brandeis on a 17-1 run through foil and epee, and maintained their advantage to win the match, 20-7.
The final round saw the Heels face No. 7 Penn State. Carolina put up a strong fight but lost the match, 16-11.
Jednak and the rest of the coaching staff were proud of the effort and the intensity that both the men and women were able to bring.
"We came to fight this weekend and were able to execute our plan. It's the exact type of meet you want to have to go into championships," said Jednak.
The Duke Duals were Carolina's last regular-season match of the season. The conclusion of the regular season shifts the focus of the team and the coaching staff towards the postseason.
"Our goal is to qualify the maximum number of people we can for the NCAA Championships, which is two fencers per weapon per gender," said Jednak.
To do that, the Tar Heels need to put together quality results at their next match, the ACC Championships that will take place on February 26th and 27th at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham.
Results
Day One
Men's Competition
Round One
No. 9 UNC vs Boston College
Foil: 5-4 BC
Epee: 6-3 UNC
Sabre: 6-3 BC
Final: 14-13 Boston College
Round Two
Bye
Round Three
No. 9 UNC vs Johns Hopkins
Sabre: 7-2 UNC
Foil: 5-4 UNC
Epee: 6-3 UNC
Final: 18-9
Round 4
No. 9 UNC vs Brandeis
Sabre: 5-4 UNC
Foil: 8-1 UNC
Epee: 7-2 UNC
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 20-7 UNC
Round 5
No. 9 UNC vs Air Force
Sabre: 5-4 Air Force
Foil: 8-1 UNC
Epee: 5-4 UNC
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 17-10 UNC
Day Two
Women's Competition
Round One
No. 14 UNC vs Boston College
Foil: 5-4 BC
Epee: 5-4 UNC
Sabre: 5-4 UNC
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 14-13 UNC
Round Two
Bye
Round Three
No. 14 UNC vs No. 9 Temple
Foil: 5-4 Temple
Epee: 5-4 UNC
Sabre: 5-4 Temple
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 14-13 Temple
Round Four
No. 14 UNC vs No. 15 Brandeis
Foil: 8-1 UNC
Epee: 9-0 UNC
Sabre: 6-3 Brandeis
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 20-7 UNC
Round Five
No. 14 UNC vs No. 7 Penn State
Foil: 5-4 Penn State
Epee: 7-2 Penn State
Sabre: 5-4 UNC
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹: 16-11 Penn State
Players Mentioned
Epee/Right Hand
/ Fencing
Sabre/Right Hand
/ FencingUNC Football: Tar Heels Overpowers Richmond, 41-6
Sunday, September 14
UNC Players Press Conference, Post-Richmond
Sunday, September 14
Bill Belichick Post-Richmond Press Conference, 9/13/25
Sunday, September 14
UNC Men's Soccer: Sandmeyer Secures 1-1 Draw vs #4 Wake Forest
Saturday, September 13