En Garde!

Much more was going on in the Malkin Athletic Center (MAC) this past weekend than your typical Pilates class. The men and women’s Intramural fencing tournament took place in the MAC fencing room—yes, there actually is one of those—where women and subsequently, men took a stab at one of the sports Harvard is actually good at (the varsity team just finished fifth in the nation). A variety of skill and experience levels were on display. While some competitors showed off consummate slicing and dicing skills, others more closely resembled two-year-olds with sticks.

While some may describe fencing as a challenging mix between intricate strategy and mind games, Arnold P. Behrer ’09, competitor for Eliot House and fencing neophyte, took a slightly less complicated approach. “I’m just going out there and poking at the guy,” he said.

“I’m pretty sure some of these girls are going to have bruises tomorrow,” said Caroline N. Vloka ’12, a member of the women’s varsity fencing team. They may have been suited up with what looked like a beekeeper’s helmet, a mix between a bulletproof vest and an apron, and one white glove à la Michael Jackson, but still “they were hitting pretty hard,” Vloka said.

Up to four people from each house were allowed to compete, and the entire men’s and women’s varsity fencing teams showed up to support their amateur counterparts. In the end, Katherine E. Medina ’10 of Eliot House and Luke A. Leafgren, a tutor in Winthrop House, came out victorious.