Feb. 26, 2005

South Bend, Ind. - Wayne State's women's epee squad took first place at the 2005 Midwest Fencing Conference Championships held on Feb. 26 at the University of Notre Dame. Wayne State finished tied-for-fourth in team scoring with Michigan at 420 points.

Notre Dame won the team title with 500 points and Ohio State was second with 490 points. Northwestern was third at 475, followed by Wayne State and Michigan (420), Michigan State (360), Chicago (310), Detroit (240), Purdue (235), Cleveland State (210), Oberlin (190), Lawrence (150), Minnesota (75) and Bowling Green (60).

The Warriors entered the single day team competition ranked third but after a first round bye, defeated sixth seeded Michigan State (5-1), second seeded Notre Dame (5-3) and fourth seeded northwestern (5-2). The Wildcats had just knocked off top seeded Ohio State, 5-3, in the semifinals. Anna Garina and Anna Vinnikov led the Warriors in the women's epee.

The WSU women's foil team was seeded sixth but came away with a fifth-place finish. The Warriors defeated Cleveland State (5-0) before falling to third seeded Northwestern (5-0).

Wayne State's women's sabre squad finished as predicted in seventh place. WSU defeated Minnesota (5-1) in the opening round before falling to second seeded Notre Dame (5-2).

Overall (men and women combined) - 1. Ohio State 1,030; 2. Notre Dame 975; 3. Northwestern 910; 4. Wayne State 840; 5. Michigan 780; 6. Michigan State 700; 7. Purdue 550; 8. Chicago 525; 9. Cleveland State 505; 10. Detroit 465; 11. Bowling Green 350; 12. Lawrence 335; 13. Oberlin 310; 14. Minnesota 205.

Women's Overall - 1. Notre Dame 500; 2. Ohio State 490; 3. Northwestern 475; T4. Wayne State, Michigan 420; 6. Michigan State 360; 7. Chicago 310; 8. Detroit 240; 9. Purdue 235; 10. Cleveland State 210; 11. Oberlin 190; 12. Lawrence 150; 13. Minnesota 75; 14. Bowling Green 60.

Women's Epee - 1. Wayne State; 2. Northwestern; 3. Notre Dame; 4. Ohio State; 5. Michigan; 6. Michigan State; 7. Chicago; 8. Cleveland State; 9. Purdue; 10. Oberlin.

Women's Foil - 1. Notre Dame; 2. Ohio State; 3. Northwestern; 4. Michigan; 5. Wayne State; 6. Michigan State; 7. Detroit; 8. Chicago; 9. Lawrence; 10. Oberlin; 11. Purdue; 12. Cleveland State; 13. Bowling Green.

Women's Sabre - 1. Ohio State; 2. Notre Dame; 3. Northwestern; 4. Michigan; 5. Detroit; 6. Michigan State; 7. Wayne State; 8. Chicago; 9. Purdue; 10. Minnesota; 11. Lawrence; 12. Cleveland State; 13. Oberlin; 14. Bowling Green.