EVANSTON, Ill. – Wheaton College (Mass.) first year Grant Smith (Oakland, Calif.) posted a 7-2 mark in three dual matches to lead the men's fencing team on Day Two of the Schiller Duals hosted by Northwestern University at Patten Gymnasium in Evanston, Ill.
Wheaton dropped three matches on the day, falling to Lawrence University, 21-6, University of California San Diego, 23-4, and Cleveland State University, 16-10. The Lyons are now 2-19 in their inaugural season.
Wheaton's foil trio was outstanding, recording a 16-11 record for the day.
Smith was outstanding in foil bouts for the Lyons. He and classmate Phillip Winston Nunnink (Kansas City, Mo.) were both 2-1 in bouts against Lawrence and led Wheaton's foil to a 5-4 mark in the match. Smith opened the day by blanking first year Vinicius Alonso de Paula (Sao Paulo, Brazil, 5-0. He followed with a 5-3 win over sophomore Will Martin (Chanhassen, Minn.), before being edged by senior Thomas Craley (Redding, Conn.), 5-4. Nunnink opened with a 5-2 loss to Craley, but rebounding with a 5-1 drubbing of Alonso de Paula and gutted out a 5-4 win over Martin. First year Logan Perez (Randolph, N.J.) picked up a 4-3 victory over Martin, before falling to Craley, 5-2, and Alonso de Paula, 5-3. First year Oliver Smink (Rochester, N.Y.) fell in his first two sabre bouts of the day, bowing to senior Donovin Brown (Anchorage, Alaska) by a count of 5-2 and first year Alan Rodriguez (Guadalajara, Mexico), 5-0. He bounced back for a 5-4 triumph over junior Jordan Diacos (Winnipeg, Manitoba). Senior Ryan Daudelin (Duxbury, Mass.) was downed by Diacos, 5-1, before suffering 5-0 losses to both Brown and Rodriguez.
The Lyons were outstanding against Cleveland State, winning seven of nine foil bouts, while also posting a 3-3 mark in sabre bouts. The difference in the match was a result of CSU blanking Wheaton in the epee bouts. Smith posted a 3-0 record, including a 5-2 win over graduate student Jesse Ndjeka (Pretoria, South Africa) and a pair of 5-1 victories over both first years Jack Miller (Charleston, S.C.) and Connor Arata (Libertyville, Ill.). Nunnink surrendered just three points combined in his three bouts. He defeated Miller, 5-2, and dropped just one point in a 5-1 win over Arata, before posting a clean sheet in a 5-0 win over Ndjeka. Perez earned a 5-3 win over Ndjeka, but was defeated by both Arata and Miller by counts of 5-2. Smink won two of three sabre bouts for the Lyons. He began with a 5-4 victory over junior Connor Bailey (Beecher, Ill.) and also collected a 5-0 forfeit win, before being edged by sophomore Simon Caisse (Cameron Park, Calif.), 5-4. Daudelin also picked up a forfeit triumph, before being thwarted by Caisse (5-2) and Bailey (5-0).
Wheaton's foil contingent was formidable against UC San Diego, despite being edged 5-4 in nine bouts. Smith won two of his three bouts. He dropped the first stand-off, 5-0, to sophomore Zander Vazquez (Goleta, Calif.), 5-0, before rebounding for a pair of wins. Smith edged first year Henry Liang (Huntington, N.Y.), 5-4, and defeated senior Jason Chin (Saratoga, Calif.), 5-3. Nunnink endured a pair of 5-2 losses to open the match, falling to both Chin and Vazquez. He finished his bouts with a 5-4 decision over junior Jacob Levy (Fresno, Calif.). Perez began his bouts with a 5-2 win over Liang, but was dropped by Chin, 5-3. He ended his match with a 5-1 loss to Vazquez. Smink suffered a pair of 5-3 losses at sabre to UCSD sophomore Roger Wu (Monterey Park, Calif.) and first year Ryan Kim-Cogan (Ridgefield, Conn.). He was shut out by first year Sam Zubatiy (San Diego, Calif.), 5-0. Daudelin was blanked by Kim-Cogan, Zubatiy and Wu by scores of 5-0 each.
Wheaton returns to action on Saturday, February 22 when it travels to West Point, N.Y. to compete in an invitational hosted by the United States Military Academy Club Fencing team.
