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Freshman epee Jean Goto, shown against Rutgers, won two of her bouts this weekend in the three Penn women's fencing team losses. [Dara Nikolova/DP File Photo]

Sometimes it's the little things that count in sports. Little things, like germs. With many players plagued by severe colds and the flu, the Penn women's fencing team entered the weekend attempting to overcome the odds against the strongest competition that the collegiate field could offer. The Quakers returned to West Philadelphia with a 1-3 record and dashed hopes. The No. 9 Red and Blue would have been hard-pressed to beat No. 1 Penn State, No. 5 Columbia and No. 7 Temple when at their healthiest and best. Penn fell to these opponents, 19-8, 17-10 and 15-12. Columbia clinched the Ivy League title over the weekend as well. The Quakers' only win on the weekend was over Ivy League rival Cornell, 19-8. A victory against the now- league-champion Lions would have been possible if not for the dominance of the Lions sabres. The Quakers took the foils, 6-3, and epees, 5-4, but Columbia's sabres had a stellar performance, sweeping the Red and Blue, 9-0. Before the match, Penn was predicting a big performance from its epees, who have given the team an extra boost throughout the season. But the slight one win margin that they brought in was not enough to counteract Columbia's sabre onslaught. After the disappointing match against Columbia, the Quakers had their chance to attack the Nittany Lions. Penn State -- a team famous for giving scholarships to international phenoms -- did not disappoint. Having added world under-20 sabre champion Katarzyna Trzopek to their roster, Penn State brought out a formidable team. Battling under pressure, Penn's sabre squad emerged from the contest victorious 7-2. This standout performance was notable, but not enough to push the Quakers over the top. Penn handed fellow Ivy rival Cornell its final defeat of the Ivy season, leaving the Big Red at a winless in the Ancient Eight. Behind sophomore Emanuelle Humblet and her 3-0 win, the foils squad rallied to an 8-1 romp, setting the stage for a large margin of victory. Cornell's best performance was in the epee, where it eked by with a one-point victory, springboarded by their freshman star Meghan Phair's three victories. The closest match of the day was against Big 5 rival Temple, with whom Penn exchanges an annual trophy to the winner and an unsavory spittoon to the unfortunate loser. This year, the tricky Owls were wise enough to sneak past the Quakers by a three win margin. "We were doing okay for a while and then lost a few bouts with leads and then the momentum changed," Penn coach Dave Michanik said. "They changed their strategies and we didn't make a counter change." This failure to adjust cost the Quakers three big losses in the foils and resulted in Penn bringing home a spittoon this year. Although this weekend was particularly tough competition, Penn has a chance to redeem themselves in the Intercollegiate Fencing Association championships at Boston College. There, Penn (14-5, 3-3 Ivy) will be in the field with six other Ivies and will have a great opportunity for sweet revenge.

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