Fencers Crush Brandeis, 25-2

The Harvard fencing team outclassed the Brandeis swordsmen last night and swept to an easy 25-2 victory.

Captain Eugene White said that despite the overwhelming victory, neither he nor Coach Edo Marion was pleased by the Crimson's performance. "We weren't fencing confidently," White said.

The fencers were blessed with poor competition in their first match since the exam layoff. White said that the Brandeis team "had no sense of the right moment to attack. They were just lousy." White added that his opponent was "so nervous" that he snapped his blade between touches.

In the epee, Captain White said he had "no problems" in disposing of his opponent 5-1, 5-2. White's colleagues John Hawkins and Sam Anderson both won handily, as did substitutes Eric Reed and David Moskowitz.

The foilists were equally easy victors over the Judges. Returning after missing two matches, Phillippe Bennett quickly stung his opponent, and Don Valentine, a lefty, used his long reach on his diminutive Brandeis adversaries to sweep to 5-0, 5-0, and 5-2 decisions. Confronted by two lefthanders, Howard Weiss recovered in time to tally three victories.

Brandeis salvaged its only two victories in the sabre category. Steve Hobbs and Mike Szymonifka both lost one of their three matches. The other Crimson sabreman, Loren Joseph, swept to three victories.

The swordsmen of Princeton will journey to Cambridge on Saturday to test the Crimson, in Harvard's first Ivy match of the season. "It looks to be very close in the Ivies," White said.