Wayne State University Athletics

Zack Belsky/WSU Athletics

Ludovica Mancini is competing at her second NCAA Fencing Championships this week in as many collegiate seasons.

Women's Fencing 3/21/2024 6:21:00 PM Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Ludovica Mancini Completes First Day at NCAA Fencing Championships

The Warrior totaled five bout wins in the first three rounds of action on Thursday.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Wayne State University women's fencer Ludovica Mancini (Rome, Lazio, Italy) completed her first three rounds of action in the women's foil at the 2024 NCAA Fencing Championships in Columbus, Ohio, on Thursday. The sophomore tallied five bout victories to start her two-day event inside the French Field House.

Mancini is making her second national championship appearance after also qualifying for last season's postseason event in Durham, N.C. She has been the Green and Gold's sole women's representative in both campaigns. The Warrior currently sits in 20th place out of 24 total fencers in the women's foil with a 5-10 ledger following day one, which consisted of the first three rounds of round robin play. Her 5-10 record includes a -21 touch differential (42-63).

Her five triumphs on Thursday were against Crystal Qian of Stanford (5-2), Josephina Conway of Notre Dame (5-3), Lauren Scruggs of Harvard (5-4), Alina Lee of Ohio State (5-1), and Samantha Catantan of Penn State (5-3).

The Warrior has eight more bouts remaining for round robin action, which will be played on Friday in Columbus. That will be rounds four and five of the competition. Those final two rounds will begin for all three weapons on Friday morning at 9 a.m.

Wayne State is in 20th overall out of 20 programs after the first day of the four-day NCAA Fencing Championships, with Mancini being the only representative of the program on the women's side. The overall team score will consist of both men's and women's action across the entire weekend. A team will be awarded one point for each victory by its student-athletes (both genders) during the competition. There were 27 institutions that qualified at least one fencer for this weekend's event.

Following the fifth cycle of round robin, the top four finishers in each weapon will fence in semifinal 15-touch bouts, with the winners fencing to determine first and second places in the final standings. Mancini will look to improve her positioning in the overall running order on the final day of the women's event.

Mancini and men's fencer Eyad Marouf has given Wayne State a presence at the national championships for another season. WSU has sent at least one competitor (male or female) in each season since 1947, when the NCAA Fencing Championship returned after World War II.

Ohio State University is hosting this year's NCAA Fencing Championships at both French Field House at St. John Arena, which is where the semifinals and finals will be held. St. John Arena is connected to the French Field House. The men's action will be contested on Saturday, March 23, and Sunday, March 24, at the two venues.

Stay tuned to WSUAthletics.com for continuing coverage of the 2024 NCAA Fencing Championships from Columbus, Ohio.

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Players Mentioned

Ludovica Mancini: Foil; 5' 5"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Ludovica Mancini
: 5' 5"; Sophomore
: Foil