Blue Devil Boys’ Fencing Advances to Semifinals

The Huntington High School boys’ fencing team came from behind to nip visiting Walt Whitman in the Suffolk quarterfinal round of the playoffs, 14-13. The Blue Devils will now advance to the Suffolk Final Four on Tuesday at Half Hollow Hills East at 5 p.m.

The playoff bracket format changed this year and Huntington has taken advantage of it. Against Walt Whitman, the action was tense in the Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School gym. The Blue Devil girls’ team was on hand to lend the boys moral support.

“The meet ran the full 27 bouts, and was always within two bouts in either direction,” said Huntington head coach Michelle O’Brien, who is assisted by Vin O’Garra.

Huntington’s foil squad was the “champion” of all the weapons, finishing with a 6-3 mark.

After the Blue Devils finally knotted the score at 13-13, the final and deciding bout came down to Huntington senior Jeffrey Garcia. The teenager rallied from a 4-2 deficit to tally the final three points for a 5-4 win that carried Huntington to victory and sent the Blue Devils on to the county semifinal round.

“I was very nervous when I saw that I was down 2-4,” Garcia said. “I took a step back took a deep breath and really focused on the bout.”