MAPLEWOOD/SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — The Columbia High School boys and girls fencing teams advanced to the finals of their respective New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s South Jersey state sectional tournaments.
The fifth-seeded girls team was scheduled to visit third-seeded Chatham on Feb. 24 and the third-seeded boys team was scheduled to visit top-seeded Millburn on Feb. 25, both after press time.
In the semifinals, the boys team defeated No. 2 seed Pingry 15-12 on Feb. 18 at Pingry in Martinsville. In saber, sophomore Emeka Onugha and senior Nathaniel Eads each had two wins and sophomore Sander Beckerman had one win; in foil, sophomore Kai Khaw-Briot, junior Liam Wojciechowski and senior Gareth Krecke each had two wins; and in epee, Ethan Lavin had three wins and fellow freshman Henry O’Briant had one win.
The Cougars won their 14th straight match to improve to a 15-1 record on the season.
The girls team won at top-seeded Ridge 16-11 in the semifinals on Feb. 19. In saber, seniors Saanvi Rohatgi and Madeleine Benson each had three wins, and senior Karol Agila had two wins; in foil, senior Samara Berg, junior Lillian Clark and senior Talia Goldberg each had two wins; and in epee, sophomore Simone Swingle and junior Maliha Valentine each had one win. The Cougars improved to 14-2 on the season. Last season, the CHS girls were state tournament runner-up, when the format was just one bracket. This season, the tournaments were broken into North and South sectionals.
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