On March 23rd, two HGFC fencers competed in the annual “Root Beer Mug” E and Under tournament at the Bay Regional Fencing Alliance in Saginaw, and impressed everyone with their intense concentration, powerful athleticism, and fearless fighting spirit.
View the complete tournament results on AskFred here:
https://www.askfred.net/tournaments/cffa7f71-b992-47e8-add6-1f8bee40fed3/results
Ammon Gibson was one of the 14 foil competitors, and went 3-3 in the pools. He had two tough losses to small, fast opponents, and one to E-rated Zach Green of BRFA, one of the most experienced fencers in the state. His three victories were textbook examples of well-planned tactics being well executed.
His first DE bout was a 15-7 win against Isla McCubbin-Green of BRFA, but he then lost to Zach Green 6-15, due mostly to Zach’s impressive defensive skills and deceptively quick ripostes. Finishing 8th in such a tough, experienced group of opponents is an excellent result. Good job, Ammon!
In the sabre event Noelle Orr, fencing in her FIRST TOURNAMENT, was the youngest of the six competitors, but was strong, smart, and eager to show her skills. In the pool bouts, she scored touches against three of her opponents, almost beating Tod Schlegemilch of the Ann Arbor Duelling Society. Noelle made her opponents work hard for every touch they scored, and took advantage of every mistake they made.
Noelle lost her DE bout 2-15 against a college fencer, Xiomara Brammer-Gonzales of the Plymouth/Ann Arbor Fencing Academy, but earned the respect and praise of all the other fencers. They complemented her for fencing so well in her first tournament and noted her strong offensive efforts. Well done Noelle – welcome to sabre competition!
Our club is getting better with every tournament, and soon we’ll have HGFC fencers competing at the U.S. Summer Nationals!