Summer Nationals 2024, Day 1 Recap: Oxenreider’s Win on Home Turf Among the Highlights on First Day

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Tierna Oxenreider (Columbia University, New York Athletic Club & New York Fencing Academy) picked a great time — and a great place — for her first Division I gold medal.

Oxenreider, 20, recently aged out of Juniors, meaning Division I Women’s Epee would be her lone event at Summer Nationals. One event, one shot at a medal.

“To start it off on this foot means a lot and shows my progress,” she says. “I've started with a new coach and a new club, and to see all that work paying off means a lot to me.”

If a one-and-done schedule wasn’t pressure enough, she was also fencing on home soil. Oxenreider lives about 15 miles east of Columbus in Reynoldsburg, Ohio.

“It gets me a little emotional,” she says. “I’ve spent a lot of time in this venue, and to have that where I win my first Division I NAC, it means a lot to me. I mean, we travel to all these different places, but to wake up this morning with my dog and in my house was really special for me. And I think that also gave me a little push and motivation.”

Oxenreider’s gold was one of four earned on Saturday, June 29 — Day 1 of the USA Fencing National Championships & July Challenge, also known as Summer Nationals.

Columbus has been good to William Morrill (Scarsdale Fencing Center & Fencers Club Inc.), too, even though he lives in New York.

The last time Summer Nationals was held in Columbus — in 2019 — Morrill finished third in Y-12 Men’s Saber. Five years later, he earned a gold medal in Junior Men’s Saber. 

“I always think about coming to my first nationals in 2019,” he says. “I got third, and that was the best result I ever had. And I was so happy to be there. And then coming here today, winning gold in Junior, it’s a completely different world.”

Even as Morrill has continued success at the Junior level, he’s already made the leap to Seniors. And at the Madrid Men’s Saber World Cup in May, a minor injury to 2024 U.S. Olympic Team member Mitchell Saron gave Morrill the chance to step up in the team event.

After Morrill finished in the individual competition, his coaches asked whether he was willing to change his flight home and stay to fence teams.

“I was taken aback at first,” he says. “But I said, ‘yeah, of course it'd be a great opportunity.’”

Team USA is glad he did, because Morrill was a machine, not missing a bout and helping propel his team to gold.

“It was just great to get so much experience and how my teammates were hyping me up,” he says. “It was really an amazing day.”

Gold: Tierna Oxenreider (New York Athletic Club & New York Fencing Academy)

Silver: Yasmine Khamis (Alliance Fencing Academy)

Bronze: Grace Hu (University of Pennsylvania)

Bronze: Jessica Lin (Medeo Fencing Club & Princeton University)

5th: Kasia Nixon (Peter Westbrook Foundation & Fencers Club Inc.)

6th: Polina Kharchyna (New York Fencing Academy)

7th: Christina Watrall (US Air Force Academy & New York Athletic Club)

8th: Sierra Springer (LEO Fencing Club)

Gold: Katerina Lung (Moe Fencing Club LLC)

Silver: Emily Jing (Jovanovic Fencing)

Bronze: Jaelyn Liu (Star Fencing Academy & Fencing Institute of Texas)

Bronze: Victoria Pevzner (V Fencing Club)

5th: Rebecca Cho (Top Fencing Club)

6th: Nadia Hayes (Canada)

7th: Adeline Senic (Renaissance Fencing Club)

8th: Caterina Fedeli (Epic Fencing Club & SCAD-Atlanta Fencing)

Gold: William Morrill (Scarsdale Fencing Center & Fencers Club Inc.)

Silver: Jordan Silberzweig (Manhattan Fencing Center & Yale University)

Bronze: Andrei Nazlymov (Nazlymov Fencing Foundation)

Bronze: Lev Ermakov (Fencing Academy of Denver & Nellya Fencers)

5th: Nicolas Wang (Fencing Academy of Denver & Renaissance Fencing Club)

6th: Wade Hjerpe (Phoenix Fencing Academy)

7th: Daniel Holz (Premier Fencing Academy)

8th: Cody Walter Ji (Nellya Fencers)

Gold: Elijah Imrek (Alliance Fencing Academy)

Silver: Joseph Wu (University of Pennsylvania & Cavalier Fencing Club)

Bronze: Reid Kokenge (Medeo Fencing Club)

Bronze: Christopher Chong (Penta Olympic Fencing Club)

5th: Nathaniel Wimmer (Elite Fencing Academy)

6th: Junzhe Shan (New England)

7th: Peter Irwin (Florida Fencing Academy)

8th: Nicholas Iarikov (New York Fencing Academy)

Find all the great Day 1 photos on Facebook.