Saber Anna Hanley '11 couldn't help but admit that the last of the women's fencing team's six opponents at last Saturday's Northeast Conference Meet was more significant than the rest for her. Hanley is a transfer student, and the Judges' final opponent was none other than Sacred Heart University, her former school."It was so nerve-racking, since we weren't fencing them until the last round," Hanley said. "I was on edge for the entire day, saving my energy for the last round."

Facing Sacred Heart junior Krista Bacci, her former teammate, Hanley fell behind 4-2 but rallied to win three straight points and take the bout 5-4. The victory culminated a 13-2 bout record for Hanley as the women's fencing team defeated Sacred Heart 17-10 for their sixth win on the day.

"I remember thinking 'I am going to be so unhappy if I lose to [Bacci],'" Hanley said. "I thought I was going to have an awful bus ride back and it would ruin my week if [I lost to her]."

The women's team also defeated the University of New Hampshire 19-8, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst 21-6, Boston University 23-4, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology 14-13 and Wellesley College 18-9.

The men's squad went 5-0 on the day, defeating New Hampshire 25-2, Boston University 23-4, MIT 14-13, Sacred Heart 17-10 and UMass-Amherst 20-7. Saber Adam Austin '11 led the way with a 12-0 bout record.

Hanley's performance came after she won the gold medal in the saber division at the New England Fall Collegiate Nov. 1. She struggled at times last Saturday, falling behind a New Hampshire fencer 4-0, but was able to rally to win that bout 5-4.

"[Hanley's] one of the best saber fencers in New England, I think," coach Bill Shipman said.

Besides Hanley, Shipman credited the epée squad's performance. Caitlin Kozel '09, a two-time NCAA Championships participant, went 9-3 to lead the club, which also included Emma Larkin '10 and Emily Mandel '12. The epées struggled against Wellesley, however, losing six of the nine bouts in that weapon.

Still, Kozel said she was encouraged by the epée squad's performance, considering its past struggles.

"We had a great record all day, and that hasn't happened in years," Kozel said.

The men's epée squad, led by Will Bedor '10 and Alex Clos '10, helped carry the men's team, but the saber team, led by Austin, proved to be the difference in the tight win over MIT.

During the match, Shipman called in a substitute, saber Naveen George '10, to hold off the Engineers. George fell behind 4-0 in his bout, but rallied to win 5-4.

"That was probably the highlight of the meet, [because] we ended up winning by one bout [over MIT]," Austin said.

Despite the wins, Shipman said he hopes to see improvement in the foil squad. Will Friedman '09, the seventh-place finisher in the foil division at last year's NCAA Championships, still remains in the starting lineup, but the Judges are currently competing without two key performers from last year's squad. Eugene Vortsman '08, a two-time NCAA Championships qualifier, graduated, and Shipman said Jimmy Fruchterman '09, a starter last year, is sidelined due to injury for the rest of the semester.

"We don't have the experience [in men's foil]," Shipman said. "We miss Vortsman a lot."

The teams next compete at the Boston Beanpot Fencing Championship at Boston College Dec. 3.