DURHAM, N.C. – UC San Diego's fencing team concludes the 2023 season as they complete competition at the NCAA Championships hosted by Duke University.
UC San Diego finishes in 16th place overall after the four days of competition wrapped on Sunday afternoon in Durham, N.C.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Going through two days of competition with rounds 1-3 on day one and rounds 4-5 on day two, the men combined for 27 victories over the five rounds.
Vedran Markota led the men with a total of nine victories. The squad captain finished 18th overall in men's epee. Joining his teammate in men's epee,
Derek Rong earned five victories to finish 23rd overall. In men's foil,
Jacob Levy and
Larry Song finished 22nd and 23rd respectively. The duo combined for 12 victories in the event. The solo representative in men's sabre,
Shawn Kim, unfortunately had to withdraw from the competition.
Renee Zuhars was the lone women representative for the Tritons. The freshman competed in women's epee and earned eight victories over two days of competition. Zuhars took wins over the two third-place finishers, including current Junior World Champion, Hadley Husisian.
QUOTABLE
"We finished 16th overall, which is not what we were expecting. The loss of
Shawn Kim due to injury diminished our chances significantly since he is our most experienced fencer, but we did not compete to the level we are capable of this time around," commented head coach
Juan Ignacio Calderon. "There is a lot that we can learn from this experience, we are a strong team that is getting stronger every year and learning how to compete better at the highest level. We work hard to be here, and we need to believe more in our own capabilities. The future is exciting for this young team!"
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.
