The Marian Catholic Spartans fencing team commenced its season with notable performances at the Libertyville/Vernon Hills Open, held on November 2nd at Libertyville High School.
According to the event results, the Spartans’ sabre squad demonstrated strong performance, with five of the seven fencers finishing in the top 16 and two securing medals. Elijah Wagner achieved third place in men’s sabre, while teammate Martin Leedy secured seventh after a narrow 15-14 victory over fellow Spartan Jeirmyri Liddell, who finished 15th. Other notable performances in sabre included Luke Bubacz, who placed ninth among 55 competitors—his best finish to date—and Brazil McGruder, who took 13th out of 26 female sabre fencers.
In addition to their success in sabre, the competition marked the debut of three novice fencers for Marian Catholic. All three earned their first victories. Harold Kallies finished 46th in men’s sabre, while Alex Bilinski placed 35th in men’s epee. Brian Patterson led the men’s epee squad with an 18th-place finish out of 47 competitors.
The Spartans aim to build on this success as they continue their season, driven by a promising mix of experienced and novice talent.