HACKENSACK, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson women's fencing team held its annual FDU Invitational on Saturday at the Rothman Center.
 
The Knights played host to nine other teams – Wagner, Hunter, Drew, LIU-Post, Johns Hopkins, NJIT, Stevens, Temple and Brandeis – and the tournament consisted of seven rounds of play.
 
Prior to the start of the action, Fairleigh Dickinson honored its four seniors – Jillian Habersaat, Nadine Abdelaziz, Anna Braun and Hana Ramdedovic.
 
The Knights squared off with Wagner in the first round and came away with a 23-4 victory over the Seahawks.
 
The Knights swept Epee 9-0, with Natalia Toby, Jennifer Vernon and Emily Gifford finishing with three points apiece. Fairleigh Dickinson earned another 9-0 victory in Saber as Wagner did not have any participants.
 
Wagner came the closest in Foil, but the Knights edged the Seahawks 5-4. Braun led the charge with three victories over Kristen Hayes, Rebecca Errickson and Anais Mazic. Abdelaziz added the other two points for the Knights, defeating Hayes and Errickson.
 
In round two, Fairleigh Dickinson fell to Temple 19-8., The Owls were ranked seventh in the nation coming into the tournament.
 
The Knights fought a tough battle in both Epee and Foil, falling 5-4 in both.
 
In Epee, Gifford took home three wins against Quinn Duwelius, Ally Micek and Sofia Ibrahim. Toby rounded things out with a win over Fiona Fong.
 
In Foil, Braun and Abdelaziz each earned two points for the Knights. Braun defeated Kennedy Lovelace and Kristen Kemnitzer while Abdelaziz defeated Auset Muhammad and Kemnitzer.
 
The Knights were swept 9-0 in Saber.
 
In round three, Fairleigh Dickison fell 15-12 to Brandeis.
 
The Knights won Epee 6-3 thanks to two victories apiece from Toby, Gifford and Vernon. Each fencer defeated Dakota Levy and Savannah Bishop to earn points for the Knights.
 
Fairleigh Dickinson fell just short in Foil, 5-4. Braun and Abdelaziz each picked up two wins for the Knights against Chaya Schapiro and Jessica Gets. The Knights fell 7-2 in Saber. Habersaat picked up both points for the Knights, defeating Laura Broffman and Hannah Mui.
 
The Knights battled Stevens in the fourth round of play and were edged 19-8 by the Ducks.
 
The Knights were blanked, 9-0, in Saber. In Epee Fairleigh Dickinson lost 5-4. Gifford and Toby each garnered two points for Fairleigh Dickinson. Both fencers defeated Erin Hatcher while Toby polished off Julie McEldon and Gifford defeated Amanda Choy.
 
The Knights lost 5-4 in Foil as well. Abdelaziz and Braun each won twice by beating Nicole Strezewski. Abdelaziz also defeated Rachel Rosa while Braun beat Caitlin Uang.
 
After a short break, the Knights lost Johns Hopkins in the fifth round, 16-11.
 
Johns Hopkins defeated the Knights 8-1 in Saber, with the only win coming from Habersaat who beat Alicja Tomaszewski.
 
Fairleigh Dickinson defeated Hopkins 5-4 in Epee. Toby and Gifford each earned two points for the Knights while Vernon added one.  All three fencers defeated Nastasia Winey. Toby also defeated Katherine Couch while Gifford beat Celine Shanosky.
 
In Foil, the Knights also won 5-4. Braun led the way with three points, beating Katherine Xiang, Rebecca Rosenthal and Aviana Duca. Abdelaziz also defeated Xiang and Duca.
 
The Knights squared off with, and beat, NJIT 18-9 in the sixth round. Fairleigh Dickinson swept NJIT 9-0 in Epee, with Toby, Vernon and Gifford all earning wins over Aubrey Watson, Malak Ejjaki and Jannelle Izurieta.
 
Fairleigh Dickinson took Saber 7-2. Habersaat led the Knights with three wins over Maria Sztan, Brittany Goulart and Kaelyn Gamel. Garcia also defeated Gamel and Goulart while Ramdedovic beat Sztan and Mehnaz Moon.
 
The Knights were defeated 7-2 in Foil. Abdelaziz and Braun each earned one win. Abdelaziz defeated Julia Garcia while Braun beat Jule Shigihara.
 
In the seventh and final round, Fairleigh Dickinson downed Hunter 18-9.
 
The Knights defeated Hunger 6-3 in Foil. Abdelaziz and Braun each downed Tasnim Halim, Yaeli Lora and Jessica Hall to lead Fairleigh Dickinson.
 
The Knights won Saber 5-4. Habersaat earned three points for the Knights by beating Jessica Chen and Lianne Doctor. She also earned a point due to a Hunter forfeit. Fairleigh Dickinson earned two more points thanks to Hunter forfeits.
 
Fairleigh Dickinson defeated Hunter, 7-3, in Epee. The Knights earned three points off of Hunter forfeits. Toby and Gifford defeated Leslie Campbell while Toby and Vernon beat Lai Chung.
 
The Knights have some time off from meets and are not back in action until March 4 at the NIWFA Conference Championships in West Point, N.Y.