JULIA TIERNAN/YH Guard JAmie Riposta, JE '02, had four steals vs. Harvard.

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"It was a tough loss," admitted point guard Jamie Riposta, JE '02, who recorded five assists and four steals. "We played hard and gave it everything we had. It's the kind of game that bugs you for a couple of days." The outcome of the game swung on a few key plays. "Down the stretch, there were times when we didn't box out, and Harvard was able to capitalize," said forward Alyson Miller, JE '01, who had 12 points and 11 boards. "They just hit shots when they needed to." Despite an overall 50-37 rebounding edge, the Bulldogs didn't grab the defensive rebounds in the closing minutes. Center Lily Glick, ES '01, had a stellar game, with 18 points and 13 boards.

The game was crucial to the Bulldogs' fading title hopes. A defeat of second-place Harvard (14-7, 7-2 Ivy) would have catapulted the Elis back into the Ivy race. The disappointing loss, coupled with a 82-69 demolition at the hands of league-leading Dartmouth on Fri., Feb. 18, ended the Elis' pursuit of a league title.

Instead, Yale must find its motivation elsewhere. "As a competitor, an athlete, you always want to win," forward Caitlin Bair, TD '02, said. "You hate to lose, no matter what the significance of the game is." On Fri., Feb. 25, the Elis travel to Columbia, which is flying high after a stunning upset over Pennsylvania. It should be a matchup of offense vs. defense—the Lions allow only 43.0 ppg, while the Elis average 63.7 ppg. On Sat., Feb. 26, Yale faces Cornell, which has lost six of its last seven. "We're looking forward to our last four games," Miller said.
—Joey Ax

WOMEN'S FENCING
Harvard-Yale-Princeton ready for epees, foils, and sabres

As her teammates coasted to a 15-12 victory over Columbia on Sat., Feb.12, fencing captain Hannah Appel, SM '00, found herself in one of the most hard-pressed bouts of the season. After fighting Columbia's top foil fencer to a 4-4 standstill, she finally conceded several minutes later. Fellow foilist Esperance Schaefer, BR '00, commended her nonetheless for maintaining her poise in "one of the closest and best-fought bouts that I remember."

More fierce battles await Appel and her teammates as they host Princeton and Harvard on Sat., Feb. 26. The Elis and the Tigers appear to be evenly matched. Yale is currently 7-1 and undefeated in the Ivy League, but Princeton stands at 13-2 and has also won all of its conference meets. Like the Elis, the Tigers have already defeated Columbia, but they prevailed over St. John's, 14-13, a team to which Yale lost. "Even though Harvard is traditionally Yale's rival, Princeton is going to be our biggest hurdle," Schaefer said.

Although the Tigers' epée and sabre squads are solid, Princeton's particular strength lies with its foil contingent, which includes top international competitor Eva Petschnigg '03, a native of Germany who went 6-0 against St. John's. Yale's foil squad, which sabrist Wyley Proctor, CC '02, described as "amazing," counters the Tigers' young talent with three seniors—Appel, who was second team All-Ivy last season, plus Schaefer and Sarah Weeks, TC '00, who tied for fourth place at the Intercollegiate Fencing Association championship last year.

Unlike Princeton, Harvard poses only a mild threat. "We're pretty confident about Harvard," Proctor said. "They're usually not a particularly difficult meet."

For all three teams, the wild card could be the sabre competition, which has just been recognized by the NCAA this year. "Sabre could make it or break it for all squads," Harvard foilist Emily Katz '02 said. "It is such a new sport that you never know what to expect."
—Kate Moran

MEN'S FENCING
Dueling for the Ivy crown

The climax of the season has arrived for the men's fencing team—and, for once, it's Princeton on top. The Bulldogs (6-2, 1-1 Ivy) enter the Harvard-Yale-Princeton tournament on Sat., Feb. 26, hoping to cement their league dominance and claim their share of the Ivy title by beating the Tigers at home. Sabrist Mitsuhiro Sudo, JE '01, said the highlight of the weekend should be the Princeton match. "All week, in every practice, the focus has been on beating Princeton," he explained. "We expect to beat Harvard—they just really aren't that good." Captain Ayo Griffin, SM '00, a two-time All-American and the 1998 national foil champion, added, "We have a pretty good shot at winning—Princeton has pretty much obliterated every team it's come up against, but if we win both meets, it will guarantee a share of the Ivy title." Yet Sudo noted, "There's really no area Princeton is good in that we aren't strong in as well. We expect to be able to beat them."

The Bulldogs' most recent meet, against Columbia on Sat., Feb. 12, was a 15-12 victory, which gives Yale a boost of momentum going into this weekend. "The team's momentum has been up and down this season," Griffin said, "but right now we've gotten up a pretty good head of steam, and the win against Columbia was definitely a big plus." Griffin will be back in action this weekend after missing Yale's loss to Pennsylvania on Sat., Jan. 29, due to illness—and hopes to prove that, even among elite competition, he's still the man to beat.
—Julia Paolitto

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