Most students come to Dartmouth with the intention of trying new things and breaking out of their comfort zone, and club sports, such as the Dartmouth club fencing team, offer them the chance to do just that. In recent years, the student-run fencing team has been among the fastest growing and most competitive sports on campus. Thanks to strong student leadership, a rapidly rising membership and promising results in recent weeks, the men's and women's fencing teams are making names for themselves in the New England area.
Over the past month, the fencing teams have competed at two Northern Fencing Conference competitions and shown strong finishes at both events. The women's team secured wins against club teams from Boston University and Smith College and came close to beating Wellesley College's varsity squad.
The women's foil squad consists of some of the team's top fencers, including captain Gaby Stern '14 and star freshman Heather Szilagyi '15. The Big Green finished with a strong overall record of 9-3 across the two NFC tournaments.
Like the women, the men have had their fair share of success over the past couple of weeks. After beating top club teams at Tufts University, the University of New Hampshire, BU and the University of Massachusetts, the men went on to beat a highly competitive varsity team at Vassar College and almost upset Boston College's varsity squad.
The performance puts them in position as the top team in the Northeast, according to Stern.
This weekend, both teams will compete at the New England Club Fencing Championships at UNH. Both squads are aiming to qualify for the club fencing National Championships starting April 14 at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Men's captain and epee squad leader Dave Seliger '12 said he has been fencing for more than half of his life.
An epee is a specific kind of fencing sword.
"I started fencing 12 years ago," Seliger said. "I wanted a sport that I could excel at and call my own, and I found that with fencing".
Seliger said his experience fencing at Dartmouth has been "fantastic."
"Some of my best friends on campus are on the fencing team," he said. "The team gives me a great outlet where I can train hard, meet interesting new people and keep in touch with alumni and old teammates."
Both teams are currently student-run, but Stern said they are looking for a coach to improve their skills.
"We're self-coached," she said. "We're in the process of trying to find a coach to come in a couple times, but right now it's mostly the upperclassmen who are the coaches."
Seliger said he takes pride in the team's success over the past couple of weeks.
"We've been getting better and better every day," he said. "This past weekend was a good example of how quickly this team is improving. [The team] loves the sport and is really intense about it. But we all make sure to have a lot of fun at the same time."
Fencing is an individual sport in many respects, but Stern said the team element has helped improve everyone's skills.
"I started fencing when I was about 10 years old," she said. "I fenced more individually before I came to college. The team aspect has definitely been really helpful."
This commitment to train hard but also enjoy the sport may be why both the men's and women's teams are attracting more new members every year. The team's total enrollment has nearly doubled, from close to 30 people in past years to approximately 50 this year.
It's definitely a great team to be on," Stern said. "Everyone's really close and really supportive of each other. A lot of '15s came onto the team this year, so it's helpful for integration between the years."
Seliger emphasized that to be successful on the Dartmouth team, students do not need to have any prior experience with fencing.
Seliger cited Tommy McQuillan '13, one of the team's biggest stars, as an example of someone learning the sport at Dartmouth.
"Tom learned to fence here, and now he's one of the top fencers on the team," Seliger said. "He's a great success story, and a perfect example of how well you can do even if you've never fenced before."
