The following is from a fencing parent:
Thirteen year old national foil fencing champion Zander Rhodes won Gold in the Junior Women’s Foil event at the Mission Regional Junior Cadet Circuit 2016 (Region 3) tournament held on Long Island, New York. This A3 rated event attracted seventy-three top level fencers from many states and earned Rhodes her A 2016 rating.
Rhodes demonstrated enormous tenacity as well as outstanding fencing, in order to rise from her difficult pool bouts which seeded her at number 18, before the direct elimination bouts. She displayed a maturity and perseverance beyond her years, to work her way convincingly through the direct elimination bouts to finally defeat Sophia Mandour from Baltimore in the finals (15-10) and take Gold.
Rhodes, who is in grade 8 at the South Orange Middle School remains under the tutelage of former Ukrainian international fencing champion, Serge Vashkevich, at the V Fencing Club in Livingston.
Coach Vashkevich said, “Zander is really fencing at a high level and translating all that she is learning in her training onto the tournament strips. I am very excited about her future in fencing.”
Rhodes placed eighth in the Cadet Women’s Foil B2C3 event with sixty-four competitors at this same tournament. She once again showed perseverance and excellent fencing during the direct elimination bouts after being seeded at number 34, in a difficult pool. She took eighth place after being defeated by Catherine Flanagan from Westchester. (15-8)
