March 11, 2007

NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Two Bulldogs, freshman foilist John Gurrieri and sophomore epeeist Michael Pearce, qualified today for the NCAA Championships to be held in Madison, N.J. on Mar. 22-25. Two other Elis, freshman foilist Andrew Holbrook and senior epeeist John Beski, are wildcard finalists, which means that they are eligible for but not guaranteed a trip to the NCAA's in two weeks.

In the foil, Gurrieri placed seventh. Holbrook took 12th but was unable to guarantee a spot at the NCAA's by matching Gurrieri's top eight finish. Senior captain Michael Aboodi ended up in 26th.

The Bulldogs met a similar fate in the epee. Pearce finished in fifth, while Beski, who advanced into the final pool, grabbed ninth to earn a chance at a wildcard invitation.

Yale's saberists in the competition, freshman Nicholas Peterson and junior Bradley Broadhead, placed 29th and 26th respectively.

Report filed by Nicholas Thorne '08, Yale Sports Publicity