The New York University Men's and Women's Fencing Teams went uptown on Wednesday night, February 16, to compete in Columbia University's George Kolombatovich Historical Meet.

And, it was historical indeed as the  15th-ranked women defeated #3 Columbia for the first time in 40 attempts. In a down-to-the-wire effort, the Violets eked out a 14-13 win over the Lions to capture the Katy Bilodeau trophy, given each year to the winner of the historic rivalry.

"We've been working real hard to build on each match, so to see it come together against Columbia was awesome," said assistant coach Lauren Willock Wunderlich. "We then rode that momentum through the rest of our matches."

They did, indeed, going on to defeat Sacred Heart University 23-4 and Vassar College 20-7. The Violets end the regular season with an 18-12 record, including victories in their last 11.

The 10th-ranked men's team also competed in three matches on Wednesday, falling to #2 Columbia 19-8, but rebounding to defeat Sacred Heart 18-9 and Vassar 22-5. 

The Violets, who finish the dual-meet season with a 14-9 record, had defeated the host Lions earlier in the season. 
  
WEAPON LEADERS

Foil
Women: Renee Wu 5-0, Chiara Codazzi 4-0, Maria Stamos 4-1, Sarah Prilutsky 3-0 
Men: Andrew Sledeski 4-5, Owen Cozine 2-1

Sabre
Women: Mari Binstock 6-1, Sharon Ni 6-1, Hannah Hoverman 4-0
Men: Kevin Zu 6-1, Jamie Ren 4-1, Brian Kim and Ryan Xu 3-1

Epee
Women: Jillian Yao 5-1, Ria Jobalia 3-2
Men: Liam Carpenter 5-2, Ian Adler and Ian Sanders 4-3 

"It was great to see all the pieces fall into place for each of our weapons throughout the evening," Willock Wunderlich added. "And, it was a great way for all of our seniors to close out the regular season."

Now, it's championship season for the Violets. The women will compete at the National Intercollegiate Women's Fencing Association (NIWFA) Championships on Saturday, March 5, at Drew University in Madison, NJ, while both teams then participate at the NCAA Northeast Regional Championships in Poughkeepsie, NY, on Sunday, March 14 (women), and Monday, March 15 (men).