Fayetteville Hosts First Homeschool Team Tournament in 2022

FAYETTEVILLE, NC – On Saturday, January 29, 2022, Fayetteville hosted the first Homeschool Team Tournament at the All-American Fencing Academy.  The first event was scheduled to pit Greensboro, Wilmington, and Fayetteville homeschool fencers against each other.  Unfortunately, the inclement weather prevented the Greensboro team from attending.

Three fencers from the Wilmington and Fayetteville team fenced against each other in a round robin event.  The Fayetteville team consisted of Team Captain Seth Hopel, Luke Eaves, Jack Tart, and substitute Elinor Morkos all fencing in their first homeschool team event.

Hopel, Eaves, Tart all went undefeated in their bouts including Morkos who was substituted in one bout.  There was also an individual Junior Varsity event featuring 5 fencers from Fayetteville, Greensboro, and Wilmington.  Elinor Morkos was the sole representative in the JV individual event, eventually placing first after pools and elimination rounds.  Elisha Wall from the Greensboro Fencing Academy placed 2nd, and Charlotte Yandle and Joel Ertzberger, both from Cape Fear Fencing Association tied for 3rd place.

The homeschool teams will compete again in the next scheduled homeschool fencing team meet in Greensboro on February 19th.

Also on Saturday, a partnership event also featuring fencers from Greensboro, Wilmington, and Fayetteville was the Pisacafe Youth Circuit.  The Pisacafe (a portmanteau of Piedmont, Sandhills, and Cape Fear, regions included in the events) Youth Circuit was created to encourage and develop youth fencing and competition in the region.

Max Greene of the All-American Fencing Academy has been competing in many local and regional events and went undefeated throughout the whole event.  Greene only gave up 7 touches in his 7 person pool, seeding 1st entering the elimination rounds.

Greene faced his toughest bout against teammate Daniel Wisniewski in the semi-final round, winning 10-7.  Greene went on to the finals to defeat teammate Avery Chapman 10-3.

Notably, Isabella Lee and Caoilinn Renaghan both fenced in their first tournaments; both girls winning bouts in the pools against a tough youth event.  Abe Kaplan of the Greensboro Fencing Academy placed 1st in his pool, losing only 1 bout, seeding 3rd in the elimination rounds.  Kaplan reached the semi-final rounds and was defeated by Avery 10-4.

On Sunday, January 30, 2022, the All-American Fencing Academy also hosted open men’s and women’s events.  All-American Fencing Academy’s Holden Moorefield and Isabelle Guevarra placed 1st in the men’s and women’s events.

Fencers from the All-American Fencing Academy are now preparing for a tournament on Saturday, February 5, 2022 at the Cape Fear Fencing Association in Wilmington, NC.  Isabelle Guevarra is also preparing to fence at the North American Cup in Richmond, NC from March 4-7, 2022.

A Growing Sport and a Growing Club

The sport of fencing is growing world-wide.  In a historically European dominated sport, US teams have been consistently been in the top places on the world stage for several years.  

The All-American Fencing Academy also hosts a Walk-In Class for fencers that want to give it a try without making a full month commitment.  The Walk-In Classes occur during Downtown Fayetteville’s Fourth Friday events.

ABOUT THE ALL-AMERICAN FENCING ACADEMY – The All-American Fencing Academy is located in Downtown Fayetteville at 207 B Donaldson St. It instructs and trains recreational and competitive fencers starting at age 7, teens, adults, and veterans ages 40+.  Its fencers compete regionally and nationally. Their coaches include former World Cup and NCAA fencers.

For more information about the All-American Fencing Academy and its classes, please call 910-644-0137, e-mail info@allamericanfencing.com or visit www.allamericanfencing.com.

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