When it comes to proving points, the Brandeis Fencing team i s especially well equipped. And last Sunday proved no different as the swordsmen and women of Brandeis hosted the Brandeis Fencing Invitational in Gosman Sports Center. The men ended the day strongly, besting MIT, Boston College, and Vassar. Their one loss, the only of the season to date, was to St. John's, by only one point. The women went 1-3 against tough competition, coming out on top only against Vassar, but by an impressive score of 21 to 6.Fencing itself is divided into three types: pee, where points can be scored anywhere on an opponent, foil, where valid hits can only be made on the torso and upper body and saber, where any part above the waist is a valid target. Teams compete by having each of their three best fencers in each discipline go against one another, leading to a total of 27 matches between teams. The first to score five points in each match wins.

At the Brandeis Invitational, the men beat MIT, 16 to 11. They also dominated Vassar at 21 to 6. One of the surprises of the day was how well the Brandeis men did against Boston College, dominating again by 21 to 6.

"I think this is the best season that we've had in at least three years," said Steve Zuilkowski '03, captain of the men's team. "We've never beaten BC by so much and it's not like they don't have talented people. The team is really starting to come together."

The men also barely lost to St. John's, one of the stronger collegiate fencing programs in the country. St. John's scored just one more point than the Judges, with 14 matches to Brandeis' 13. Nonetheless, the men are still off to a great season. As of the invitational, they are at 7-1 for the season, proving that this team never "saber rattles." It means business.

On the women's side, the team faced tough competition.

"The girls' side is always very competitive," said Zuilkowski.

That proved to be the case Sunday, when Boston College scored 16 to the Judges' 11. MIT won 18 to 9. Brandeis convincingly beat Vassar 21 to 6, but lost to St. John's 25 to 2.

The women are 6-4 for the season, having won five of their six matches coming into the invitational. The results of this week's meet only go to show how tough the women's competition was.

One thing stood out to me when witnessing a fencing meet for the first time. The amazing swordplay was to be expected; the lighting quick combination of speed and strategy I was ready for; and, given the context, seeing dozens of people in full fencing uniform was not really all that odd. The thing that stuck me as odd was the beeping. There is a lot of beeping. Competitive fencing is scored electronically with a beep emitted every time a touch is made. But, after a minute or two, I came to a realization. Beeping is awesome.

The next fencing meet is scheduled at Yale University on January 22, and Brandeis is looking forward to rising to the challenge.

"This is our best shot to beat Yale in the last three years," says Zuilkowski.

Looking at the men's and women's seasons so far, it is easy to see that Captain Zuilkowski has a point. After all, so does the entire team.