MTFC 'E' and Under Mixed Epee

http://askfred.net/Results/results.php?tournament_id=24027&highlight_competitor_id=91067&event_id=96392

Well I did great in the pools, coming out 1st seed. But then I managed to lose my first DE to Eli Gandour-Rood, 15-13, whoops.

Doh!

I lost my first pool bout to Tom Martin. At first I was up a couple points. He got a few and we were at 4-3. Maybe I got overconfident; he scored, making it 4-4, then scored a single light again to win. I did very well in the rest of my pool bouts, winning two 5-0, one 5-1, one 5-2, and one 5-3. I was mostly worried about Jay Stainbrook and Sean Holland. Jay was doing very well too, but I had a fair amount of time to watch him before we fenced and I was able to devise a strategy that worked well (I won 5-2).

So I was the top seed and got a bye. Eli fenced Roger Brees and won 15-11, so I was matched with Eli. He used to go to SAS fairly often and we had fenced quite a bit. I couldn't quite remember what it was like but I think I usually did well against him. Maybe I was a little overconfident.

He scored the first two points as I probed and he did parry-ripostes. Then I shifted to a distance game tactic, using quick bouncy footwork to find those moments of closer distance, then attack straight in. That worked for several points. Then he adjusted to that and began using strong quick parries against my straight in attacks. So I began disengaging his parries, which worked but resulted in a string of double touches. I think I was up a couple points at the end of the first period. I went into the second period planning to shift between several tactics, such as setting up fleches, going for the thigh, and trying active disruptive blade work. These mostly didn't work so well, or I screwed them up. It wasn't a good fleching day for me. My disruptive bladework allowed him to score on my hand. I think I did manage a hit to his thigh though. Even so at one point I was up a couple of points, so I decided to ease off and play a patience game. Maybe I eased off too much because he got a couple points before I gave up that tactic. I think we reached 13-13. I tried my 4-6 trick but it failed, so he got to 14-13. I don't even remember the final point but it was his.

Well in any case whichever of us won had to face Charlie, which I hadn't been looking forward to—not just because he's my clubmate but because if we fenced one of us would have to lose and I didn't want either of us to lose. So I didn't have to fence him after all. Charlie took out Eli handily, 15-9, putting him in the final four. He fenced Alexander Nelson, a tall, counterattacking French-grip kind of guy. At first Charlie had some trouble. After the first period I was able to give some advice and he had some insights of his own. In the second period Charlie took to fleching a lot. It was working pretty well but even so they got to 14-14. Charlie made the final touch. That was a close one.

On the other side of the tableau Zach beat Donald Lake then fought a tough battle against Jay, the 2nd seed. Zach was down a bit but caught up, then they traded points for a while. In the end Zach won 15-13, putting him in the final four (and earning him his E). His semifinal bout was against Henry Duchow, who won 15-8. So the final bout was Henry and Charlie. Henry, like Alexander Nelson, is a tall, French-grip counterattacker. Charlie had just won against Alexander after figuring out a fleching tactic. In the final bout Charlie mostly fleched straight off the line, scoring over and over very quickly. It was almost saber-like, the speed of the attacks off the line. Henry apparently couldn't figure out a good defense and Charlie just kept doing the same basic thing, winning 15-11 and earning his long-sought D.

Afterward Jeff Lucas and I went for a late lunch and talked about octopusses.