Team Accomplishments

Intercollegiate Fencing Association

The IFA ws America's oldest collegiate fencing organization when it was disestablished in 2009. USNA was admitted in 1896. The first 3-weapon team championship was awarded in 1923, when two-man epee teams were added to the competition.

Single Weapon Team Champions:

• Foil:  1901, 1905, 1907, 1910, 1915, 1916, 1917, 1920, 1922, 1925, 1929, 1939, 1950 (tie with NYU), 1955, 1964
• Saber: 1922, 1932, 1943, 1948, 1953, 1962, 1964 (tie with CCNY), 1978
• Epee: 1924, 1933, 1938, 1939, 1943, 1948, 1949, 1950 (tie with NYU), 1951, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1966, 1967 (tie with Columbia), 1969, 1981

3-Weapon Team Champions:  1924, 1925, 1938, 1943, 1953, 1956, 1957, 1964  

NCAA Team Champions:  Of USNA's 7 NCAA Team Champions, 3 were from Fencing:

• 1950 Samuel Powel III (saber), Jerome Stuart (foil), Thomas Stuart (epee)
• 1959* Alfonso Morales (saber), Joseph Paletta (foil), Roland Wommack (epee)
• 1962 Edwin Hurst (saber), John McCarthy (foil), Thane Hawkins (epee)

(*Only 3 teams have won NCAA team championships by sweeping 1 st place in all three weapons:  Navy (1959), NYU (1960 & ’61), and Columbia (1988))

NCAA Runner up: 

• 1948, 1953, 1960, 1963

Individual NCAA champions:

Foil:                                  Saber:                                  Epee :

Joseph Paletta 1959        James Day 1948                  William Bryan 1948
                                         Frank Zimolzak 1952           Thomas R. Stuart 1950
                                         Alfonso Morales 1959          Roland Wommack 1958 and ‘59
                                                                                      Thane Hawkins 1962
                                                                                      Lawrence Crum 1963

NCAA Fencers of the Year:

• 1953 – Frank Zimolzak (saber)          1969 – James Davidson (epee)
• 1955 – John Gonzalez (foil)               1970 – Joseph “Bert” Freeman (foil)
• 1959 – Roland Wommack (epee)       1981 – Gregory Pace (epee)

National Intercollegiate Womens Fencing Association champions:

• 2016 - Naomi Ngalle (saber)

Olympians

The following alumni fencers and coaches represented the U.S. in the Olympics :

1912: Marc W. Larimer (class of ‘12) individual foil and epee
1920: George Calnan (’20) individual foil
          Roscoe L Bowman (’21) individual and team saber
          Edwin G. Fullinwider (‘21) individual and team saber  (youngest U.S. Olympian, age 19)
          Claiborne J. Walker (‘21) individual and team saber
          Frederick J. Cunningham (‘20) individual and team saber
          George Heintz Jr. assistant coach
1924: George Calnan (’20) individual and team foil and epee
          Edwin G. Fullinwider (’21) team saber
          Thomas P. Jeter (‘19) individual and team foil
1928: George Calnan (’20) individual and team foil and epee, bronze medal for individual epee 
1932: George Calnan (’20) team foil, individual and team epee, 2 bronze medals in team epee and team foil 
          Curtis Shears (’22) team epee, bronze medal
          Richard Steere (’31) team foil, bronze medal
1960:  Alfonso Morales (’60) individual and team saber
           Joseph Paletta (‘60) individual and team foil
           Roland Wommack (’59) team epee
           Andre Deladrier head coach
1964:  Alfonso Morales (’60) team saber 
1968:  Alfonso Morales (’60) individual and team saber 
1972:  Alfonso Morales (’60) individual and team saber
           Joseph “Bert” Freeman (‘70) individual and team foil 
1976:  Edward Donofrio (‘73) individual and team foil
1984:  Edwin Hurst ’62 served as Manager of Fencing Competition.

 

Club conferences

U.S. Association of Collegiate Fencing Clubs individual and squad national champions :

• Rae Katz (women’s epee) 2004
• Joel Katz (men’s epee) 2006, 2007, 2008
• Naomi Ngalle, Sara Shea, Maryam Al-Hassan (women’s saber squad)  2015
• Naomi Ngalle, Sara Shea, Naadia Puri (women’s saber squad)  2016
• James Henderson, Sebastian Keefer, Chris Meacham, Andrew Weiss (men’s saber squad) 2019

U.S. Association of Collegiate Fencing Clubs (USACFC) team national champions :

• Navy women - 2014  (3rd in epee, 5th in foil, 6th in epee – 1 st place combined women’s team)

(In 2019, the men’s and women’s combined team finished 2nd.)

Baltimore Washington Collegiate Fencing Conference combined team champions (mixed gender) :

• 2011, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2023, 2024, 2026

BWCFC Individual Champions:

• 2006 – Joel Katz (epee)
• 2007 – Joel Katz (epee)
• 2008 – Joel Katz (epee)
• 2009 – Anthony Giunipero (saber)
• 2010 – Billy McCrone (saber)
• 2011 – Billy McCrone (saber)
• 2012 – Conor Cross (epee), Jordan Rettie (saber)
• 2013 – Corey Grey (epee)
• 2015 – Sam Polsinelli (saber)
• 2016 – Andrew Klassen (epee), Naomi Ngalle (saber)
• 2017 – Marshall Yaklin (foil), Travis Dill (epee)
• 2018 – Krista Trefren (saber)
• 2019 – James Henderson (saber), Caroline Finley (epee), Andrew Klassen (epee)
• 2022 - James Henderson (saber)
• 2023 - Arianna Smith (epee), Garret Brandreth (epee), Connor Pettigrew (foil)
• 2024 - Cecilia Zagara (foil), Gabby Cleveland (saber), Garret Brandreth (epee)
• 2025 - Aaron Hobson (foil), Alison Palisoul (saber)

Elected to the U.S. Fencing Hall of Fame :

• George Calnan (’20), Clovis Deladrier, Andre Deladrier, Alfonso Morales (’60), Edward Donofrio ('73)

Naval Academy Hall of Fame 

Headlee, C. D.	1917		Parker, J. T., Jr.	1955
Calnan, George	1920		Hill, R. W.	1956
Cunningham, F J.	1920		Kirkpatrick, J. H.	1956
Fullinwider, E. G.	1920		Wolverton, J. R.	1956
Becker, A. E.	1922		Paletta, Joseph, Jr.	1959
Guider, J. W.	1922		Wommack, R. R.	1959
Hunter, G. P.	1922		Cauley, Bernard J.	1960
Malstrom, A. I.	1922		Lewis, William E.	1960
Shears, C. C.	1922		Morales, Alfonso H.	1960
Callaway, C. H.	1924		Hawkins, Thane D.	1962
Stubbs, D.	1925		Hurst, Edwin K., II	1962
Eskilson, E. T.	1926		McCarthy, J.J., Jr.	1962
Bennett, R.	1927		Crum, Lawrence A.	1964
Foley, H. J. P., Jr.	1938		Frey, Raymond	1964
de Poix, V. P.	1939		Fluhrer, Norman P.	1965
Campo, A. C.	1940		Heredia, A. B.	1966
Stokes, G. P.	1942		Hewitt, Frank F.	1967
Blalack, R. E.	1944		Davidson, James A.	1969
Day, James C.	1948		Freeman, Joseph B.	1970
Bryan, W. L.	1949		Solecki, Peter K.	1972
Powel, S. F., III	1950		Donofrio, Edward J.	1973
Stuart, Jerome C.	1951		Richards, R. E., Jr.	1978
Stuart, Thomas R.	1951		Meyer (Druce), R.	1980
Utterback, P. W.	1951		Boddie (Mines), G.	1981
Hiller, Melvin L.	1953		Pace, Gregory H.	1981
Leavitt, H. M.	1953		Lefon, Carroll F., Jr.	1982
Zimolzak, Frank	1953		Hitchcock, David M.	1988
Allen, J. N., III	1954		Hanover, Paul E., Jr.	1991
Gonzalez, John C.	1955		Prieto, Brody L.	1994