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March 20, 2003
EVANSTON, Ill. -
Four Northwestern fencers are in and another is at the doorstep, as NU preps for this weekend's NCAA Championships. The NCAA announced last Thursday that freshmen Emily Pasternak (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier), Sharon Sullivan (Fairport, N.Y./Fairport) and Christina Wang (Milpitas, Calif./Castilleja), as well as sophomore Julia F?ldi (Budapest, Hungary/Szent Istavan Gimnazium) will represent NU at the championships in Colorado Springs, Colo.
Sophomore Lauren Van Gieson (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Valley) could join Pasternak in the sabre draw, as she was selected as the first alternate. If a selectee can not compete, Van Gieson will earn her first trip to nationals.
"We're obviously very excited," said NU head coach Laurie Schiller. "If Lauren gets to go too we'll have five of a possible six in the tournament, which would make us a very strong team."
F?ldi and Wang headline NU's foilists. F?ldi went a team-best 94-15 this season, placing third at the Midwest Collegiate Championships and sixth at the Midwest Regionals. Wang posted an 84-26 record, the second best freshmen mark on the team. She also finished fifth at the conference championships and seventh at Regionals.
Sullivan will compete in the ep?e draw. Sullivan had an 85-22 mark, good for the second most wins on the team. She took fifth at the conference championships and sixth at Regionals. In her first two weekends of college competition, Sullivan took home three ep?e titles; she captured the Burton Open, the Big Ten Club Championships and the USFA Remenyik Open in successive events.
Pasternak will represent the NU sabreists after an impressive debut season. With an 81-15 overall record, she registered a team-best third-place finish at Regionals. The local product also took fifth at the conference championships.
A maximum of 72 competitors will be in the 2003 women's field, including 24 in each weapon. St. John's won the women's portion of the 2002 championships, scoring 100 points. Notre Dame followed with 97, Penn State (the combined winner) with 94, Ohio State with 79 and Yale with 65. NU tallied 56 points to place sixth among women.