While they held their own against comparable competition at the NCAA Championships this week, the Brandeis fencing teams were simply overmatched by the nation's elite Division I teams. The Judges were the top Division III finisher and ended up in third-place among New England schools during the competition held at Drew University in Madison, N.J. from Thursday to Sunday. However, they finished 18th place out of 28 teams overall.

"Every bout counts [at NCAAs]; there's constant intensity here," coach Bill Shipman said. "[These fencers] aren't going to beat themselves."

All three Brandeis fencers failed to achieve All-American status. Kai Keller '07 finished 19th in men's epée with nine victories in 23 bouts. Foil Will Friedman '09 and epée Caitlin Kozel '09 each went 5-18, with Friedman coming in 23rd in the men's foil and Kozel ending up 24th in women's epée.

Close losses were a problem for the Judges throughout the competition, as Keller, Friedman and Kozel combined for 12 narrow 5-4 defeats.

Keller, who has been a star on the fencing team since his first year, made his last appearance for Brandeis at Nationals.

This was the third overall time he competed at NCAAs: he finished 15th in 2004 and 21st in 2006.

"It was a little disappointing," Keller said. "I didn't finish the way I wanted to finish [my career]."

Despite his 19th place finish, Keller was only three victories removed from landing in the top 12.

Keller registered a victory against men's epée runner up Benjamin Bratton of St. John's, and his most memorable bout was a 1-0 overtime victory over a fencer from Penn State University. With no touches registered by either fencer in regulation, Keller struck first in overtime for a rare 1-0 finish.

"[Keller] was one of the hardest workers on the team," Shipman said.

"Not only was he good, but he tried to improve."

Friedman was making his second career appearance at NCAAs as he came in 22nd in 2006. With a few more touches going his way in close bouts, he could have finished much higher in the standings.

"I had a number of [losses] in 5-4 bouts, [and] it further illustrates that I need to work more on my focus and attitude," Friedman said. "I need to fight more for a win."

Friedman was able to top sixth-place finisher and personal rival Henry Kennard of St. John's 5-3. The two fencers have been competing since before entering college. Friedman put up another impressive fight against St. John's fencer Alexis Landreville. Down 4-1, he was able to claw his way back to tie the score at four before losing 5-4 on the last touch.

"I think that fencing against top-level fencers brings out a lot of your strengths and weaknesses," Friedman said. "It shows [what you need] to improve upon."

Making her first appearance at NCAAs, Kozel finished 24th in a deep women's epée field. She sat in 20th place after the first day of women's competition with a 4-10 record, but faltered on the second day, earning just one victory in nine bouts.

"I knew I'd face [tougher] competition [on the second day]," Kozel said. "My head wasn't in it as much, [and] I wasn't as focused."

Kozel did defeat opponents from powerhouse fencing programs like Ohio State University, Harvard University and Northwestern University.

"There's not usually this many elite fencers [at one tournament]. It's more enjoyable to face them; their form is so good," Kozel said. "You have next to nothing to lose. There's not as much pressure [on you].