M. Fencing eyes pivotal weekend at Hutchinson

It's showtime for the Penn men's fencing team as it prepares to trade blows with three of the nation's top programs this weekend at Hutchinson Gym.

The Quakers are set to host Haverford, Penn State, Columbia and St. John's.

Penn gets the day started with a match against the Fords at 10 a.m., before the day becomes exponentially more difficult.

"Once we start with Columbia, Penn State and St. John's, we're in heavy company," Penn coach Dave Micahnik said. "If you want to see really high level fencing, it's a great meet to come watch."

For the Red and Blue, a win against the Lions is imperative to keep Penn's Ivy League title chances alive.

And no one has as much of a vested interest in beating Columbia than Penn senior epee Scott Eriksen, whose younger brother, Kevin, fences foil for the Lions.

Though the two will not directly encounter each other, the elder Eriksen knows his priorities.

"It's tough to choose between blood and teammates," Eriksen said. "But I have to root for my team here.

"I'll root for my brother outside of the strip."

Beating Columbia, however, is not Penn's most daunting task -- the Nittany Lions strung together a line of six consecutive National Championships from 1995-2000, while the Red Storm is the reigning top dog.

"In recent years we've been losing to [Penn State], some years very close, some years not quite so close," Micahnik said. "We haven't beaten them in quite a while.

"St. John's blew our doors off last year, the year before we were quite close with them. But they were the national champions last year and nobody was even close."

According to Micahnik, between Columbia, Penn State and St. John's, there are very few weaknesses to attack. The Quakers' best hope is through top-end efforts from all three weapons.

"My goal is to win at least two bouts on every school, but I'm going to try to get three on Columbia," Penn senior sabre Dan Vincent said.

Even though the Red and Blue face the daunting task of taming two Lions and a Red Storm, they remain unfazed.

"St. John's and Penn State are very difficult teams," Eriksen said. "[But I] wouldn't say I'm intimidated, but anxious and anticipatory."

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