Welcome to the record books, Becca Ward. Again.
The Blue Devil senior captured her third NCAA saber championship Friday, becoming the fifth female fencer to take home three national titles and the first to do so in the saber division.
Ward, who also won in 2009 and 2011, defeated Penn State’s Monica Aksamit 15-12 after beating Princeton’s Eliza Stone 15-5 in the semifinals, a rematch of last year’s championship bout.
Ward won a bronze medal in the saber division in the 2008 summer in Beijing, prior to matriculating to Duke. The four-time All-American marks the end of her collegiate career with her victory, and she has previously stated she has no intention of competing in the 2012 London Olympic Games.
“It was really emotional to fence the last time for Duke,” Ward said. “It’s the last time I’ll be representing Duke on the fencing strip. It was an amazing experience, and I’m glad to have my team here with me.”
During those next two days the Blue Devils battled to a ninth-place finish among the 25 schools competing, despite sending a small contingent of only six fencers. That marked the fewest fencers of any school to place in the top 10, where Duke finished for the third consecutive year.
Senior Tristan Jones was the Blue Devils’ second-highest finisher, earning 12th out of 24 in the epee division, where teammate and sophomore Dylan Nollner placed 15th.
Jones won 12 of his 23 bouts while Nollner, a member of the US Junior National Team, came out on top nine times.
Rounding out the small Duke squad, junior Anthony Lin finished 19th in the saber division. On the female side, Sarah Collins won 11 of 23 in a strong freshman performance, earning her 13th. In the same division, junior Emily D’Agostino finished in 20th place.
Although it was a strong finish for the team, Ward stole the headlines in a memorable final performance as a collegiate competitor, even if the final match was a close one.
“It was back and forth, but I pulled it out in the end,” she said. “It was all really emotional afterwards. I couldn’t be happier.”
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