Post by chuck on Dec 4, 2006 16:57:33 GMT -5
THIS STORY WAS RECENTLY PUBLISHED ON THE HOME PAGE OF THE AMARILLO COLLEGE WEBSITE.
#1 Ranked Fencer at Amarillo College
The Sport of Kings
It’s called the sport of kings, but there’s a princess competing on the Amarillo College Fencing Team. Not only that, she’s now ranked in the top 10% in the world. Wins at a recent tournament in Albuquerque catapulted 14-year-old Juleah Nusz to an “A” ranking. She’s the first fencer at Amarillo College, indeed the first in the entire division, to receive such a high ranking. Juleah is one of several dozen fencers currently competing for AC and she got her start on her 11th birthday.
“I thought it would be interesting to learn how to use swords,” says Juleah. “I had a choice between basketball camp and fencing. I chose fencing.”
AC’s fencing program sees about 20 kids sign up each semester. They all start out in the beginning class, learning the basics of footwork, lunging, moving up and down the “strip.” Coach Chuck Slaughter says it’s important that all of them have fun, but some show a gift for the sport early on.
Coach Slaughter says, “Juleah wasn’t here very long before I was talking to her parents and saying ‘Don’t leave her in the children’s program.’ Some kids thrive on the competition and have a gift. Others just want to be Zorro and have a good time. There’s room for both.”
A Quick Progression
That prodding from the coach led Juleah to move into the intermediate, and later the advanced, fencing classes. While drilling and learning advanced techniques, Juleah began to hone her skills with the epee—one of three types of swords used in fencing. Eventually, she began competing and found a niche. She now competes in about one tournament each month, facing both girls and boys in her age range. Some of them she is familiar with, having met them on the strip many times. Others, though, are an unknown. Juleah says it doesn’t take long to figure out how to beat them.
“I look for ways to deceive my opponent into making mistakes,” she explains. “I try to find an opening to score a touch, try to find things that work with them, their weaknesses. I do certain things: tap their blade to see what they’re going to do or I fake attacks and see how they respond.”
That shrewdness is a large part of how Juleah reached the ranking she now has—the #1 ranked Youth 14 Women's Epee fencer in the United States.
“I think there are times I feel really calm about the whole thing,” says Juleah’s mom, Aimee Nusz. “I know she’s going to win. I feel it from her. When she first started winning we’d be numb. The last two nationals we felt from her that she was going to win. We sat back and watched her win. Now that she’s up at this higher level we’re different spectators than when she first started.”
A Profitable Relationship
Juleah isn’t the only Nusz currently fencing. Dad Bary and brother Derik are also on the Amarillo College team—Derik is ranked # 23 in Youth 12 Men's Epee. And AC has even more bragging rights. Cole Merki is ranked # 12 in Youth 12 Men's Epee and # 41 in Youth 14 Men's Epee; Chris Wrampelmeier is ranked # 28 in Veteran 40 Men's Saber; and Craig Ledford is ranked # 31 in Veteran 40 Men's Saber.
The partnership between Amarillo College and the fencing team is one that is a proven success. All fencers are required to sign up for classes. In return, the school provides a space for the club.
“We want all of our fencers to register for a college fencing class,” says Coach Slaughter. “That’s our way of supporting the college, which provides this facility for us. The college doesn’t pay us to teach those classes either. It’s symbiotic. We both gain something from it and it works really well.”
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In the past decade, hundreds of fencers of all abilities have faced one another in the fencing salle at Russell Hall, bringing thousands of dollars and priceless recognition to AC. According to head coach Richard Howard, the AC Fencing Program is the oldest and largest certified fencing program in the region, providing three separate distinct classes with two certified coaches and five Junior Olympian teaching assistants. Howard says most fencing centers charge monthly rates as well as hourly fees for one-on-one lessons. At AC, students pay a single course registration fee of $40.00 per semester. And he says the facilities are the envy of many fencing centers across the country.
The AC Fencing Program has been complimented by the United States Fencing Association at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, the United States Fencing Coaches Association, and professional coaches and athletes from across the Nation on numerous occasions as one of the finest and least expensive fencing training facilities in the country. Our fencers proudly represent AC and the Amarillo area in competitions across the nation—and soon, possibly the world.
International Competition
Juleah is now preparing for her first international competition in Bonn, Germany in January 2007. Next month the USFA will select the top 12 registered fencers to attend. Juleah is currently 14th in the cadet points list and is 10th in line among the registered fencers for the tournament. Meanwhile, the Amarillo College Fencing Association will be hosting a Junior Olympics Qualification Tournament (Plains Texas Division) on December 2 and 3. For more information about fencing or about the AC Fencing Association, visit www.acfencers.com.
Created by Norma Stary on 11/28/2006 02:33 PM
Last updated by Norma Stary on 11/29/2006 10:10 AM
© 2006 Amarillo College Amarillo College 806.371.5000 An Equal Opportunity Community College
#1 Ranked Fencer at Amarillo College
The Sport of Kings
It’s called the sport of kings, but there’s a princess competing on the Amarillo College Fencing Team. Not only that, she’s now ranked in the top 10% in the world. Wins at a recent tournament in Albuquerque catapulted 14-year-old Juleah Nusz to an “A” ranking. She’s the first fencer at Amarillo College, indeed the first in the entire division, to receive such a high ranking. Juleah is one of several dozen fencers currently competing for AC and she got her start on her 11th birthday.
“I thought it would be interesting to learn how to use swords,” says Juleah. “I had a choice between basketball camp and fencing. I chose fencing.”
AC’s fencing program sees about 20 kids sign up each semester. They all start out in the beginning class, learning the basics of footwork, lunging, moving up and down the “strip.” Coach Chuck Slaughter says it’s important that all of them have fun, but some show a gift for the sport early on.
Coach Slaughter says, “Juleah wasn’t here very long before I was talking to her parents and saying ‘Don’t leave her in the children’s program.’ Some kids thrive on the competition and have a gift. Others just want to be Zorro and have a good time. There’s room for both.”
A Quick Progression
That prodding from the coach led Juleah to move into the intermediate, and later the advanced, fencing classes. While drilling and learning advanced techniques, Juleah began to hone her skills with the epee—one of three types of swords used in fencing. Eventually, she began competing and found a niche. She now competes in about one tournament each month, facing both girls and boys in her age range. Some of them she is familiar with, having met them on the strip many times. Others, though, are an unknown. Juleah says it doesn’t take long to figure out how to beat them.
“I look for ways to deceive my opponent into making mistakes,” she explains. “I try to find an opening to score a touch, try to find things that work with them, their weaknesses. I do certain things: tap their blade to see what they’re going to do or I fake attacks and see how they respond.”
That shrewdness is a large part of how Juleah reached the ranking she now has—the #1 ranked Youth 14 Women's Epee fencer in the United States.
“I think there are times I feel really calm about the whole thing,” says Juleah’s mom, Aimee Nusz. “I know she’s going to win. I feel it from her. When she first started winning we’d be numb. The last two nationals we felt from her that she was going to win. We sat back and watched her win. Now that she’s up at this higher level we’re different spectators than when she first started.”
A Profitable Relationship
Juleah isn’t the only Nusz currently fencing. Dad Bary and brother Derik are also on the Amarillo College team—Derik is ranked # 23 in Youth 12 Men's Epee. And AC has even more bragging rights. Cole Merki is ranked # 12 in Youth 12 Men's Epee and # 41 in Youth 14 Men's Epee; Chris Wrampelmeier is ranked # 28 in Veteran 40 Men's Saber; and Craig Ledford is ranked # 31 in Veteran 40 Men's Saber.
The partnership between Amarillo College and the fencing team is one that is a proven success. All fencers are required to sign up for classes. In return, the school provides a space for the club.
“We want all of our fencers to register for a college fencing class,” says Coach Slaughter. “That’s our way of supporting the college, which provides this facility for us. The college doesn’t pay us to teach those classes either. It’s symbiotic. We both gain something from it and it works really well.”
In the past decade, hundreds of fencers of all abilities have faced one another in the fencing salle at Russell Hall, bringing thousands of dollars and priceless recognition to AC. According to head coach Richard Howard, the AC Fencing Program is the oldest and largest certified fencing program in the region, providing three separate distinct classes with two certified coaches and five Junior Olympian teaching assistants. Howard says most fencing centers charge monthly rates as well as hourly fees for one-on-one lessons. At AC, students pay a single course registration fee of $40.00 per semester. And he says the facilities are the envy of many fencing centers across the country.
The AC Fencing Program has been complimented by the United States Fencing Association at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, the United States Fencing Coaches Association, and professional coaches and athletes from across the Nation on numerous occasions as one of the finest and least expensive fencing training facilities in the country. Our fencers proudly represent AC and the Amarillo area in competitions across the nation—and soon, possibly the world.
International Competition
Juleah is now preparing for her first international competition in Bonn, Germany in January 2007. Next month the USFA will select the top 12 registered fencers to attend. Juleah is currently 14th in the cadet points list and is 10th in line among the registered fencers for the tournament. Meanwhile, the Amarillo College Fencing Association will be hosting a Junior Olympics Qualification Tournament (Plains Texas Division) on December 2 and 3. For more information about fencing or about the AC Fencing Association, visit www.acfencers.com.
Created by Norma Stary on 11/28/2006 02:33 PM
Last updated by Norma Stary on 11/29/2006 10:10 AM
© 2006 Amarillo College Amarillo College 806.371.5000 An Equal Opportunity Community College
