The Thundercats fencing team at Libertyville High School has only grown from its debut season in 2013 and had a great deal of success this past season.
Three years ago, the Thundercats had 21 students in the program, and this year their numbers have more than doubled, to 48 participants.
Junior Andrew Bringle and sophomore Emily Hamilton both added to those numbers because of their connections with friends who were already members of the fencing team and encouraged them to join.
Hamilton expressed that even though it was her first year fencing, it was a good place to start and the unique sport is “really fun and easy to pick up.”
For those who may not know, the goal in fencing is to score touches against your opponent. Each weapon, foil, epee, and sabre, have different rules about how and when you can score touches. These rules evolved from the historical origins of the weapon and make the strategy and tactics different for each one.
The foil weapon is a lightweight sword with a blade that is thin, rounded, and flexible. Epees are are similar to foils but generally heavier, and the sabre sword tends to be wider, flat, and less flexible, except towards the tip.
“In three short years, we’ve gone from being the newest team in the Great Lakes High School Fencing Conference to winning the conference dual meet championship in men’s epee and sabre,” Head Coach Rick Jackim stated. “I’m also very proud that several of our fencers have won gold medals in both men’s events.”
The women’s sabre team won second place in the conference dual meet. The championship men’s teams’ consisted of sophomore Dylan Boyle; juniors Bringle, Tore Posterli, Brian Lemay, Brian Weiss, Joe Fusco, Avi Limer; and senior Remington Price. The team also brought home 10 medals from the first two open tournaments.
Junior women’s sabre captain Skyler Jackim thought that the team worked incredibly
hard this year while working together and learning each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Jackim placed in the top eight in most tournaments this season, and continued to improve as the season went on.
She emphasized that her favorite part of being on Thundercats is “the sense of camaraderie that accompanies such a close-knit team.”
Captain of the men’s sabre team, Brian Lemay, thought that the team “had a lot of experienced fencers, as well as very quick-learning beginners that really made our team great this year.” He loves to share his passion for fencing with others and help players improve while coming together as an effective team.
This was the first time in more than 20 years that a school other than Stevenson, New Trier or Culver has won the Conference Championship.
Price, who just learned how to fence last year, won the gold medal in the men’s epee event at the Illinois State High School Fencing Championship.
Boyle also won the gold medal in the JV Championship in men’s sabre this past season.
Several of the Thundercats fencers wish to continue fencing after high school, as fencing scholarships are one of the biggest unfulfilled scholarships in college athletics.
“While many colleges have fencing teams, the most popular option is to fence at the club level in college. Many colleges offer competitive club programs that travel to other schools for meets and tournaments,” Coach Jackim stated.
Bringle stated that he definitely plans to fence in college, most likely on a club team. Next season, the Thundercats wish to continue to do as well, and even better, than they did this past year.
Jackim indicated that she is “looking forward to helping bring my women’s team to first place in the conference and building a solid base for when I am gone.”
