Browne Leads Wildcats at NAC with Top-20 Finish

12/12/2017 8:49:00 AM | Women's Fencing

PORTLAND, Ore. – Alexis Browne led the Wildcats who competed at the December iteration of the North American Cup this weekend with a top-20 finish in sabre.

Browne, ranked 42nd in senior sabre by USA Fencing entering the event, earned national ranking points for finishing in the top-32.

The first year went 4-2 in pool bouts to earn the 22nd seed ahead of the direct elimination round. Browne handily defeated the 43rd seed Evie Bustamente by a score 15-5 before narrowly falling to 11th seed Chloe Gouhin, 15-14, in the round of 32. Before the event, Gouhin was ranked 37th in senior sabre by USA Fencing.

Fellow first years Isabella Min and Jacqueline Hua competed in the sabre competition, as did Abigail Swallow, an incoming member of the Class of 2018.

Anya Harkness competed in the two-day epee competition at the NAC as well. Harkness was automatically entered into the second pool stage, and took one pool bout before having to face 40th seeded Amanda Sirico in the first direct elimination matchup, where Harkness was defeated.

Emma Scala, another member of the class of 2018, fenced in the epee competition, while fellow classmates Alyssa Chen, Jerrica Liao and Elina Moon all performed well in the foil competition.

Junior Yvonne Chart was also in action over the weekend at a satellite World Cup senior foil competition in Antalya, Turkey. Chart finished in 15th place and in the top half of the strong field.

Chart picked up three victories in pools over Hillary Avelleira of Venezuela, Merve Karamete of Turkey and Tangsholpan Aitzhanova of Kazakhstan.

Chart opened the direct elimination rounds with a 13-5 win over Olga Koroleva of Kazakhstan, before falling to Martyna Dlugosz of Poland in the Round of 16, in a rematch of one of Chart's pool bouts.

Dlugosz and Chart had the same number of international ranking points before the competition, and Dlugosz advanced all the way to the semifinals before falling to top-ranked seed and eventual champion, Saskia Loretta Van Erven Garcia of Colombia.

First Year Sarah Filby will be the next Wildcat in action in December, competing in a junior foil World Cup event this Saturday in Havana, Cuba.