HHS Fencers Continue to Make Point
The Huntington High School boys' and girls' fencing teams continue to win more than they lose and make the point they are among Suffolk's best. The Blue Devils recently enjoyed a string of positive performances, much to the delight of head coach Alan Kuver.
The Huntington girls' team toppled visiting Newfield, 15-12 to raise its record to 7-2. Seniors Maggie Askerberg and Taylor Choy and junior Brianna Kirkland each won a pair of bouts and all lost tough 5-4 verdicts to Newfield's top foil fencer. Senior Carly Glowacky was 3-0 in epee. Eighth grader Tea Khokhar won her second bout of the day to clinch the blue Devils' victory.
The Huntington boys' team also turned back Newfield, 16-11. The victory improved the Blue Devils' season mark to 5-4. Seniors Brent Filippini and Scott Garafolo both went 3-0 in saber. Senior Ricky Hermer-Fried and junior James Montefusco were 3-0 in epee. Sophomore Eli Goldman won his third round bout clinch the team's victory.
In a battle with rugged Commack, the Huntington girls fell, 15-12. The Blue Devils posed a tough challenge to the second place Cougars, pushing them to the second to last bout before the meet was finally decided.
Sophomore Mary Sheehan took her bout into overtime before dropping the match, 4-3. Freshman Irina DeSimone returned to the varsity line-up for the first time since an injury at last year's Huntington Relay. "She did not disappoint, winning all three of her matches to lead the saber squad to 6-3 victory," Kuver said. Seniors Maggie and Kelly Askerberg had two wins in their respective weapons.
The Blue Devil boys' squad also dropped a 15-12 verdict to Commack. Fencing well against the second place team in the county, the Blue Devils came up just short. Seniors Joe Rizzi and James Ferraiolo were both 3-0 on the day. Huntington pushed the Cougars to the 25th out of 27 bouts before dropping the deciding match
In other action:
The Huntington girls' team defeated both Brentwood and Centereach in a tri-meet. The Blue Devils swept past Centereach 21-6 on the wings of some fancy swordsmanship. Seniors Katia DeSimone, Kelly Askerberg, Maggie Askerberg and Carly Glowacky and sophomore Olivia Castillo, freshman Elisa Medina-Jaudes and eighth grader Tea Khokhar all finished undefeated. Freshman Elisa Medina-Jaudes clinched the meet in her second epee bout with a 5-1 decision. Sophomores Kaitlin Dayton and Jaclyn Bacik and freshmen Hanae Wada and Bailey Riordan all won the first varsity bouts of their respective careers.
The Blue Devil boys also bested Centereach, winning 15-12 behind senior Joseph Rizzi, who was 3-0 in foil and who clinched the victory with a 5-4 decision in his last bout. Seniors James Ferraiolo and Ricky Hermer-Fried were undefeated in epee, both finishing two-match day at 6-0.
In the day's early meet, Huntington's girls' squad overcame Brentwood, 17-10. Senior Carly Glowacky was 3-0 in epee. Senior Taylor Choy clinched the meet in her third bout with a 5-0 win. Sophomore Olivia Castillo, freshman Elisa Medina-Jaudes, and eighth grader Tea Khokhar all had their first starts of the season and won five bouts between the three of them.
Brentwood nipped Huntington's boys, 14-13. Highlights included seniors James Ferraiolo and Ricky Hermer-Fried going 3-0 in epee. The Blue Devils held a 10-8 lead before Brentwood ran off five consecutive wins to take a 13-10 lead. Huntington responded with two wins of its own to narrow its deficit to 13-12, before dropping the deciding bout, 5-4.
In an earlier regular season match-up against Brentwood, the Huntington girls won, 18-9 while the boys' team lost, again by the same 14-13 score as in the tri-meet
In the girls' meet, senior Katia DeSimone was 3-0 in saber and senior Carly Glowacky was 2-0 in epee. Junior Rachel Feltman won the deciding bout 5-2. The Blue Devil boys were led by James Ferraiolo, who was 3-0 in epee. Senior Joseph Rizzi finished 3-0 in foil.