PHILADELPHIA – The Fairleigh Dickinson women's fencing team saw its first competition since winter break at this past Saturday's Philadelphia Invitational hosted by Temple University.
 
The Knights fenced six teams, including host school Temple University, and were able to claim two victories on the day.
 
The strong effort of the saber squad, led by senior captain Sophia Bischof (Bonn, Germany/Albert Einstein Gymnasium) and junior Hanna Heldenmuth (Miami, Fla./Keystone National), helped FDU earn wins against in-state rivals NJIT by a score of 16-11 and Drew University, 23-4.  FDU suffered defeats at the hands of UPenn (18-9), Northwestern (23-4), North Carolina (19-8) and Temple (23-4).
 
The best results for the foil squad were posted by sophomore Alix Lerch (Puebla, Puebla, Mexico/Instituto Oriente), while senior Christine Forsythe (Hackettstown, NJ/Hackettstown) led the epee squad in victories on the day.
 
The Burgundy and Blue will now turn its attention to the Northwestern Duals, a two-day road tournament in Evanston, Ill. against some of the nation's elite teams.