Jan. 10, 2002
EVANSTON, Ill. - It's been almost two months since Northwestern's women's fencing team has competed in a team event, and to say the undefeated squad is ready to go is an understatement.
The 6-0 team reported back to campus before the rest of the student body to participate in a training camp to prepare for this weekend's big home event. The Duals, which feature men's and women's teams from 13 schools, begins Friday at 2 p.m. and concludes Sunday afternoon at Patten Gymnasium.
Northwestern has an outstanding record in the Duals, posting an 84-29 record since 1982 for a .743 winning percentage. The Wildcats went undefeated in 2000 and 2001, and dropped just two duals in 1999.
Schools participating in this year's NU Duals include Cleveland State, Detroit-Mercy, Fairleigh Dickinson, Johns Hopkins, Lawrence, Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Temple and Wayne State.
Despite the presence of rivals Notre Dame and Ohio State, Northwestern will not square off against either of those teams. Instead, the dual to watch will be NU and North Carolina, which takes place Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. UNC finished 17th in last year's NCAA Championships, just three places behind the Wildcats. The two squads have met a total of 31 times, with UNC taking the slight 16-15 advantage.