Author: admin

RESULTS

We had a number of fencers attend Salle New Bern’s Skirmish at Tryon Palace yesterday. It was a beautiful day to hold this outdoor event on the grounds of the Colonial Governor’s mansion.  Interesting A2 event in that a couple of the better fencers were injured and a U fencer earned his B.  (He would have earned his A except for a red card.)  Kenyatta Sanford got the bad luck of being in the pool with the eventual winner (A – Aiden Click) and the person who went from U to B (2nd place finisher, Gregory Howard).  She went 1-4, lost her first DE to the C who finished 8th, and finished 24th.  Nora Reber went 1-3 in her pool but ran into our Ryan O’Dea in her first DE and finished 20th.  Ryan was 3-2 in his pool, defeated Nora, but then ran into Stephen Kmiec, who finished 3rd and earned his way back to a B.  Ryan finished 13th.  Robert Thomas was also 3-2 in his pool, won his first DE, but then ran into Aiden and finished 11th.  Patrick Gadow was 4-1 in his pool, only losing to an A, Tristan Click.  He won his first DE but then lost to the same C who took out Kenyatta in a close 13 – 15 bout.  Patrick finished 9th and went from being a U to a D26.  Jackson Jones (fencing on a broken toe) was 4-1 in his pool, and James Russell was 5-0 in his.  Jackson won his first two DEs, while James got a first round bye, and won his first DE.  That placed them against each other in the round of 8, with James coming out ahead.  Jackson finished 7th.  The weirdness of this event was that the two B rated teammates fenced in the round of 8 and the two A rated teammates, the Click brothers, also met in the round of 8.  That meant that the top 4 rated fencers all ended up in the same half of the table.  Aiden defeated James on his way to the title.  James earned the 3rd place trophy and re-upped his B to a B26.  Congratulations to everyone.

IMPORTANT DEADLINES

Our last event of the season, the Stab-a-thon, is April 18th.  At the moment, the Open foil is a 19 person D1.  The Open epee is already a 24 person A1.  The D and under epee is a 9 person E1.  The registration fee jumps up after April 12 (Today).

The deadline for entering the Summer Nationals at the regular fees is May 6th.  The regular fees (tournament fee, event fee, and administrative fee) total $225 for one event, $320 for two, etc.  After May 6th the fees triple, so $675 for one, $960 for two, etc.  Let me know if you are going so I can make plans, the only person I see at the moment is Brendan.

CLUB UPDATES

The new afterschool class starts on Tuesday and will be Tuesday/Thursday.  All the other classes and lessons should be per usual for this week.

I hope to do two 12 and under events.  Right now May 2 and 23rd look open.  Let me know how that works for people.  So far, no one has even expressed an interest, so let me know if there is any.

SUMMER CAMPS

No input since the beginning so let’s go with this

July 13-17    Advanced epee

July 20 – 24   Beginner foil

July 27-31    Advanced foil 

August 3-7    TBD

ABSOLUTE HIGH SCHOOL ALL-AMERICAN and ALL-ACADEMIC  AWARDS

The self-nomination process for the Absolute Fencing High School All-American and All-Academic awards is open from now until June 2nd.  To be eligible, you must be a USA Fencing member and in High School grades 9-12 (Homeschool counts).  For the All-American status there are three levels:  First team – to be first team All-American you must have earned or re-earned an A or B in the 2025-2026 season (there are some other possible criteria such as placement at NACs, world events, etc.).  For second team honors you must have earned or re-earned a C or D.  For honorable mention you must have earned or re-earned an E.  For the All-Academic team, first team status is awarded for those with a 3.85 and above GPA, so long as you are in the top 25% of your class.  For the second team, your GPA must be between 3.4 – 3.84.  There are four scholarships available (one $4,000 and one $1,000 scholarship each for a male and a female) by also submitting an essay.  There is a $35 application fee (each), so be certain you meet the criteria.

ARMORING CLINIC

There seems to be some interest in an armoring clinic, so Herman is looking at setting one up this summer.  We would probably have Kathy Walters come in.  Kathy is (was?) the person who represents the US at International Armorer meetings and also is one of the people they send to International events to oversee the international armorers.  Let Herman or me know if you are interested and some dates that might be good.

UPCOMING EVENTS                                                                                  

April 18                CFFA                                      Wilmington                Stab-a-thon                     Open foil, open epee, Div III epee

April 24-27        NAC                                          Richmond, VA                                                  Div 1, Junior, Vets  

May 3                  Forge                                      Durham                    Spring Forge-ward            Open epee, open sabre      

May 16              Apex                                        Apex                            Novice Cup                    Y10, Y12, Y 14 foil, adult foil and epee

May 30              Apex Fencing                             Apex                         Coach Miller Memorial       Open foil, open epee, Div III foil

June 27 – July 6   USA Fencing                            Portland, OR                Summer Nationals            Regular Fee entry deadline May 6

pax vobiscum,

Greg Spahr
Head Coach
Cape Fear Fencing Association

IMPORTANT DEADLINES

Donny Zelinski’s club (Salle New Bern) has scheduled their outdoor epee for April 11th at the Tryon Palace in New Bern.  It is currently a 34 person A2 and they have spots for up to 42 people.  It is always a fun event, and I recommend that all of our adult epeeists get entered.  If necessary, we may be able to set up carpools.  Registration closes TODAY, April 5th.

CLUB UPDATES

This week is St, Mary’s Spring Break (April 6-10), so no afterschool.  Other classes and lessons should all be as usual.

The April evening Beginner class will start Monday, April 6.  The last afterschool beginner class of the year will begin on Monday, April 13.  The May evening beginner class will begin Tuesday, May 5.

Our last event of the season, the Stab-a-thon, is April 18th.  At the moment, the Open foil is a 17 person D1, with no one rated above an E.  The Open epee is already a 19 person A1.  The D and under epee is an 8 person E1.  The registration fee jumps up after April 12.

I hope to do two 12 and under events.  Right now May 2 and 23rd look open.  Let me know how that works for people.  So far, no one has even expressed an interest, so let me know if there is any.

SUMMER CAMPS

No input since the beginning so let’s go with this

July 13-17    Advanced epee

July 20 – 24   Beginner foil

July 27-31    Advanced foil 

August 3-7    TBD

EXCHANGE STUDENTS

IIE has some new fencing exchange students who might be available for placement.  One is a 16 year old woman from Spain, the other a 16 year old man from Germany.  I don’t know if these are full year or semester placements.  Let me know if you are interested and I will put you into contact.

ABSOLUTE HIGH SCHOOL ALL-AMERICAN and ALL-ACADEMIC  AWARDS

The self-nomination process for the Absolute Fencing High School All-American and All-Academic awards is open from now until June 2nd.  To be eligible, you must be a USA Fencing member and in High School grades 9-12 (Homeschool counts).  For the All-American status there are three levels:  First team – to be first team All-American you must have earned or re-earned an A or B in the 2025-2026 season (there are some other possible criteria such as placement at NACs, world events, etc.).  For second team honors you must have earned or re-earned a C or D.  For honorable mention you must have earned or re-earned an E.  For the All-Academic team, first team status is awarded for those with a 3.85 and above GPA, so long as you are in the top 25% of your class.  For the second team, your GPA must be between 3.4 – 3.84.  There are four scholarships available (one $4,000 and one $1,000 scholarship each for a male and a female) by also submitting an essay.  There is a $35 application fee (each), so be certain you meet the criteria.

UPCOMING EVENTS                                                                                  

April 11            Salle New Bern                           New Bern                    Skirmish at Tryon Palace    outdoor open epee

April 11            Asheville                                    Asheville                      C and under                   C and under men’s and women’s, foil and epee

April 18                CFFA                                      Wilmington                Stab-a-thon                     Open foil, open epee, Div III epee

April 24-27        NAC                                          Richmond, VA                                                  Div 1, Junior, Vets        

May 16              Apex                                        Apex                            Novice Cup                    Y10, Y12, Y 14 foil, adult foil and epee

May 30              Apex Fencing                             Apex                         Coach Miller Memorial       Open foil, open epee, Div III foil

pax vobiscum,

Greg Spahr
Head Coach
Cape Fear Fencing Association

IMPORTANT DEADLINES

The Bull City Regional is in late registration.  However, it has some smallish registration caps.  Most of the epee events are already waitlisted.  There are spaces in the other weapons, but you should get entered if you are interested.  It will be held April 4-5 in Raleigh.  I don’t see any of our fencers, so if you get in, let me know.

Donny Zelinski’s club (Salle New Bern) has scheduled their outdoor epee for April 11th at the Tryon Palace in New Bern.  It is currently a 31 person A2 and they have spots for up to 42 people.  It is always a fun event, and I recommend that all of our adult epeeists get entered.  If necessary, we may be able to set up carpools.

CLUB UPDATES

Standard week of practice this week.  (Hopefully)

Next week is St, Mary’s Spring Break (April 6-10), so no afterschool.  Other classes and lessons should all be as usual.

The April evening Beginner class will start Monday, April 6.  The last afterschool beginner class of the year will begin on Monday, April 13.  The May evening beginner Class will begin Tuesday, May 5.

Our last event of the season, the Stab-a-thon, is April 18th.  At the moment, the Open foil is a 18 person D2, with no one rated above an E.  The Open epee is already a 19 person A1.  The D and under epee is an 8 person E1.  The registration fee jumps up after April 12.

I hope to do two 12 and under events.  Right now May 2 and 23rd look open.  Let me know how that works for people.  So far, no one has even expressed an interest, so let me know if there is any.

SUMMER CAMPS

July 13-17    Advanced epee

July 20 – 24   Beginner foil

July 27-31    Advanced foil 

August 3-7    TBD

EXCHANGE STUDENTS

IIE has some new fencing exchange students who might be available for placement.  One is a 16 year old woman from Spain, the other a 16 year old man from Germany.  I don’t know if these are full year or semester placements.  Let me know if you are interested and I will put you into contact.

UPCOMING EVENTS                                                                                  

April 11            Salle New Bern                           New Bern                    Skirmish at Tryon Palace    outdoor open epee

April 11            Asheville                                    Asheville                      C and under                   C and under men’s and women’s, foil and epee

April 18                CFFA                                      Wilmington                Stab-a-thon                     Open foil, open epee, Div III epee

April 24-27        NAC                                          Richmond, VA                                                  Div 1, Junior, Vets        

May 16              Apex                                        Apex                            Novice Cup                    Y10, Y12, Y 14 foil, adult foil and epee

May 30              Apex Fencing                             Apex                         Coach Miller Memorial       Open foil, open epee, Div III foil

pax vobiscum,

Greg Spahr
Head Coach
Cape Fear Fencing Association

RESULTS

We held the Lynn Krupey Memorial Iron Maiden yesterday.  For the foil, Kenyatta Sanford was 1-3 in her pool, lost her first DE and finished 13th.  Nora Reber followed the same path and finished 10th.  Jaden Vergara of Greensboro won the event and her D26.

Rebecca Rothman of Research Triangle was second and earned her E26.  Yara Ibrahim tied for 3rd and re-earned her E26 tying with Hannah Joseph, both of Apex.  

For epee, Lindsey Wagner went 2-6, lost her first DE and finished 9th.  Christi Golder was 3-5, lost the first DE to finish 6th.  Kenyatta was a perfect 8-0 and won all her DEs to take home the crown, sword, and stuffed animal.  Sophia Nolan of Apex won second, with Ava Azad of Apex and Lillian Ragsdale of Forge taking the thirds.  

Ending in sabre, Lindsey was 2-3 in the pool and won her first DE to take one of the bronzes.  Irina Vihodet of Foothills Fencing won the other bronze.  Anita Miller-Sackman of North Florida Fencing won the silver.  Kenyatta was 3-2 in the pool, but swept the DEs, to take the gold and re-earn her sabre E26.

Thanks to Brendan McConville and Donny Zelinski for reffing.  Thanks to Josh White for managing and observing.  Thanks to Mike Kinney and James Perkins for armoring.  Thanks to Herman Smith for armoring and negotiating with the K of C.  And thanks to everyone who helped set up, tear down, and just came to watch and support their teammates.

The NCCA regionals were held at Haverford yesterday.  They do this in the old school way of pools to the very end.  The first round cuts it to 30 fencers.  They then do five pools of six to cut to eighteen, then three pools of six to cut to a final pool of twelve.  Your finish is based on where you finish in the final pool in which you fence.  In epee, Nicole Milewski (UNC-Chapel Hill) came out first in the opening round, but didn’t make it to the third round.  Keely Carter (Temple – sabre) made it to the third round but then took a medical withdrawal.  I don’t know what for, but hopefully nothing serious.

IMPORTANT DEADLINES

The Divisional II/III and Y14 National Qualifiers are now up on askfred.  Even though the Nationals are in Portland, this should be a good event to attend.  The event is March 21-22, and registration closes on March 15.  The events are still pretty sparse except for the Div II Men’s foil, which needs another body to be a C event, and Div II Men’s epee, which already is a C event.

The Bull City Regional is open for registration.  However, it has some smallish registration caps.  Most of the epee events are already waitlisted.  There are spaces in the other weapons, but you should get entered if you are interested.  It will be held April 4-5 in Raleigh.

Donny Zelinski’s club (Salle New Bern) has scheduled their outdoor epee for April 11th at the Tryon Palace in New Bern.  It is currently a 23 person A1 and they have spots for up to 42 people.  It is always a fun event and I recommend that all of our adult epeeists get entered.  If necessary we may be able to set up carpools.

CLUB UPDATES

Standard week of practice this week. The next homeschool beginner class will start on Wednesday, March 11.  

I hope to do one 12 and under event, but the season is so booked that it looks like it will be only one, sometime in May.

SUMMER CAMPS

From the feedback I have received, it looks like the first and third weeks will be the advanced foil and epee camps.  Which will be which depends on what further info I get.  That leaves the second and fourth weeks to be at least one beginner camp, and maybe a second beginner camp, or some advanced camp.

July 13-17    Advanced foil or epee

July 20 – 24

July 27-31    Advanced foil or epee

August 3-7

UPCOMING EVENTS                                                                                 

March 14            On Point                                Clover, SC                  Spring Open                     Open foil, D & under foil   Registration closes 3/12

March 14            Pisacafe                                 Fayetteville                Championships                  Middle school individual, homeschool team and individual events 

March   20        Greensboro Fencing                   Greensboro                  Friday night epee            Unrated epee   Registration closes 3/18

March 21-22        Divisional Quals                       Apex                         Div II/III & Y14 national Qualifiers       Registration closes 3/15

March 28          Greensboro Fencing                    Greensboro                   Mixed Greens                E & under foil, epee, sabre      Registration closes 3/25

April 4-5           Bull City Regional                      Raleigh                        Regionals

April 11            Salle New Bern                           New Bern                    Skirmish at Tryon Palace    outdoor open epee

April 11            Asheville                                    Asheville                      C and under                   C and under men’s and women’s, foil and epee

April 18                CFFA                                      Wilmington                Stab-a-thon                     Open foil, open epee, Div III epee

April 24-27        NAC                                          Richmond, VA                                                  Div 1, Junior, Vets        

May 16              Apex                                        Apex                            Novice Cup                    Y10, Y12, Y 14 foil, adult foil and epee

May 30              Apex Fencing                             Apex                         Coach Miller Memorial       Open foil, open epee, Div III foil

pax vobiscum,

Greg Spahr
Head Coach
Cape Fear Fencing Association

RESULTS

Catching up from last week, Keely Carter was awarded Temple’s Fencer of the Meet award for her performance at Temple’s home invitational.  She went undefeated against Penn State and St. Johns.  This week at the NIWFA (National Intercollegiate Women’s Fencing Association) championships she led Temple’s women’s sabre to 2nd place out of fourteen teams.  That placed her in the top 16 for the individual championship where she won her way to second place.  They have an unusual way of fencing their championships, so if you are interested, just ask.

Closer to home, The Pisacafe/Homeschool League had a meet at Greensboro in conjunction with the NCFL’s Individual Championships.  In the elementary school division, Jeremiah Yandle went 4-2 in the pool.  He won his first DE 10-0, then lost to the person who won, to take home a bronze medal.  Three out of the four Southeastern Cardinals turned up sick Saturday, so a hasty match was arranged where Eli Yandle was matched with a couple of the fencers from All-American to face the Dead Squirrels.  Calling themselves the Living Squirrels, they almost pulled off the upset, losing 42-45.  In the Homeschool Individuals, Eli was 2-2 in his pool, received a bye, avenged one of his pool losses, but lost the final to earn the silver medal.

In the NCFL Individual epee, James Russell was 4-1 in his pool and Jackson Jones was 3-1 in his.  James won two DEs before losing in the semis and Jackson won 3 DEs before losing in the finals.  Jackson finished 2nd and James finished 4th.

IMPORTANT DEADLINES 

The deadline to enter the Iron Maiden at the lower cost is today, March 1.  The Lynn Krupey Memorial Iron Maiden is on March 7.  It is the state’s only all women’s event.  We need to get all of our eligible female fencers out to draw in as many other participants as possible.  The foil is a D event, the epee could be a C event with three more fencers, and sabre is an E event.

The Divisional II/III and Y14 National Qualifiers are now up on askfred.  Even though the Nationals are in Portland, this should be a good event to attend.  The event is March 21-22, and registration closes on March 15.  The events are still pretty sparse except for the Div II Men’s foil, which needs a couple of bodies to be a C event, and Div II Men’s epee, which already is a C event.

The Bull City Regional is open for registration.  However, it has some smallish registration caps.  Most of the epee events are already waitlisted.  There are spaces in the other weapons, but you should get entered if you are interested.  It will be held April 4-5 in Raleigh.

Donny Zelinski’s club (Salle New Bern) has scheduled their outdoor epee for April 11th at the Tryon Palace in New Bern.  If it adds 1 B fencer and an additional body, it would be an A event.  I expect that will happen.

CLUB UPDATES

Standard week of practice this week.  The next beginner class starts on Tuesday, March 3rd.  The next homeschool beginner class will start on Wednesday, March 11.

UPCOMING EVENTS                                                                                 

March 7               CFFA                                    Wilmington                Iron Maiden                     Women’s open foil, epee, and sabre        Early registration closes March 1.

March 14            On Point                                Clover, SC                  Spring Open                     Open foil, D & under foil   Registration closes 3/12

March 14            Pisacafe                                 Fayetteville                Championships                  Middle school individual, homeschool team and individual events 

March   20        Greensboro Fencing                   Greensboro                  Friday night epee            Unrated epee   Registration closes 3/18

March 21-22        Divisional Quals                       Apex                         Div II/III & Y14 national Qualifiers       Registration closes 3/15

March 28          Greensboro Fencing                    Greensboro                   Mixed Greens                E & under foil, epee, sabre      Registration closes 3/25

April 11            Salle New Bern                           New Bern                    Skirmish at Tryon Palace    outdoor open epee

April 11            Asheville                                    Asheville                      C and under                   C and under men’s and women’s, foil and epee

April 18                CFFA                                      Wilmington                Stab-a-thon                     Open foil, open epee, Div III epee

April 24-27        NAC                                          Richmond, VA                                                  Div 1, Junior, Vets        

May 16              Apex                                        Apex                            Novice Cup                    Y10, Y12, Y 14 foil, adult foil and epee

May 30              Apex Fencing                             Apex                         Coach Miller Memorial       Open foil, open epee, Div III foil

pax vobiscum,

Greg Spahr
Head Coach
Cape Fear Fencing Association

RESULTS

Waylon Shepherd travelled up to the Novice Cup at Apex on Saturday for the Y12 men’s foil.  He went undefeated in his pool, 5-0.  That earned him a bye in the DEs.  He won his first DE but lost the second to the eventual winner.  He ended up 6/25.

The ACC Championships were held this weekend at Duke, with Nicole Milewski fencing epee for UNC-Chapel Hill’s women’s team.  In the team event on Saturday, she was up and down and finished about 50/50 for the day.  In the individuals on Sunday, she was 4-2 in her pool which got her into the DEs, where they only take up the top 8.  She won her first two DEs (over teammates) but lost in the finals to bring home the silver medal.

IMPORTANT DEADLINES

 The deadline to enter the Richmond NAC in April is this Wednesday, February 25th.  It has the Division 1 National Championship (you have to have qualified), but also Junior and Vet events.  Right now, I only see Brendan and Jackson entered.

The Divisional II/III and Y14 National Qualifiers are now up on askfred.  Even though the Nationals are in Portland, this should be a good event to attend.  The event is March 21-22, and registration closes on March 15.  The events are still pretty sparse except for the Div II Men’s foil and Div II Men’s epee.

The Lynn Krupey Memorial Iron Maiden is on March 7.  It is the state’s only all women’s event.  We need to get all of our eligible female fencers out to draw in as many other participants as possible.  The foil needs one more warm body to be a D event, the epee could be a C event with four more fencers (one of whom needs to be rated), and sabre could become an E event with one more entry.

Donny Zelinski’s club (Salle New Bern) has scheduled their outdoor epee for April 11th at the Tryon Palace in New Bern.  The Clicks are in and there are 2 Cs from Donny’s club.  If we could just find 2 Bs somewhere and can get a bunch more bodies, it would be an A event.

CLUB UPDATES

My bad, but I kept forgetting to mention this:  Since it is February members can also do a 6 month membership.  For that, you pay for 5 months but get 6 months of fencing.  You pay $225 instead of the $270 if you pay month by month.  This is only available in February and August.

Standard week of practice this week.  The next beginner class starts on Tuesday, March 3rd.

Our upcoming events are on askfred.   Get signed up for the Iron Maiden March 7th and the Stab-a-thon on April 18.  

UPCOMING EVENTS                                                                                 

February 28         NCFL & Pisacafe                     Barber Park, Greensboro    Championships         NCFL Individual Championships, Homeschool Team and Individual Championships

March   1            Forge Fencing                         Durham                     Youth                               Y10 & Y12 foil,  Y10, Y12, & Y14 sabre    registration closes 2/28

March 7               CFFA                                    Wilmington                Iron Maiden                     Women’s open foil, epee, and sabre

March 14            On Point                                Clover, SC                  Spring Open                     Open foil, D & under foil   Registration closes 3/12

March 14            Pisacafe                                 Fayetteville                Championships                  Middle school individual, homeschool team and individual events 

March   20        Greensboro Fencing                   Greensboro                  Friday night epee            Unrated epee   Registration closes 3/18

March 21-22        Divisional Quals                       Apex                         Div II/III & Y14 national Qualifiers       Registration closes 3/15

March 28          Greensboro Fencing                    Greensboro                   Mixed Greens                E & under foil, epee, sabre      Registration closes 3/25

April 11            Salle New Bern                           New Bern                    Skirmish at Tryon Palace    outdoor open epee

April 11            Asheville                                    Asheville                      C and under                   C and under men’s and women’s, foil and epee

April 18                CFFA                                      Wilmington                Stab-a-thon                     Open foil, open epee, Div III epee

April 24-27        NAC                                          Richmond, VA                                                  Div 1, Junior, Vets         Registration closes 2/25

May 16              Apex                                        Apex                            Novice Cup                    Y10, Y12, Y 14 foil, adult foil and epee

May 30              Apex Fencing                             Apex                         Coach Miller Memorial       Open foil, open epee, Div III foil

pax vobiscum,

Greg Spahr
Head Coach
Cape Fear Fencing Association