Foil Julian Cardillo '14 was named Fencer of the Year for the Northeast Conference. Cardillo's record of 24-1 this season was best in a conference of 24 teams and nearly 400 fencers."It's definitely an honor," Cardillo said. "I had a pretty good season. I'm very happy with it. In the end, I just kind of fenced my game and I had some pretty good days. It was good to see Brandeis do well, and I was glad to be able to help the team." Cardillo has been an asset to the Brandeis fencing team since coming out of St. John's Preparatory School last year. He said that the transition between programs has been smooth.

"High school fencing and college fencing are fenced the exact same way when it comes to format," he said. "The pace of the college game is a lot quicker and more physically demanding. The range of opponents is a lot bigger because in high school, you only really fence guys from one specific state, whereas in college, the Northeast Conference itself is already all of New England. Brandeis itself fences really big schools in the fencing world like Penn State [University] and Duke [University] and [New York University]."

Cardillo was recently been with another accolade-the Joseph E. Pechinsky Award for Sportsmanship and Achievement.

"Joe Pechinsky was an Olympic Coach. I think he has the record for the most Olympians on the American fencing team. A lot of the guys inlayed on the trophy are celebrated fencers. . It's supposed to go to a New England fencer, and it's an honor," Cardillo said.

Cardillo was also selected as the University Athletic Association Athlete of the Week for the week ending Feb. 27. The women's team has also excelled this season. Saber Anna Hanley '11 and foil Vikki Nunley '13 were both selected as NFC All-Stars. Hanley finished the season with a 31-3 record, while Nunley fenced to a 27-7 mark.

"[Nunley and Hanley] both had really solid years," Cardillo said. "[Nunley] took home a national medal in October and [Hanley] has probably been the main backbone of the women's saber team this season. She's battled through injuries, and she's been there every time, and she's been very reliable," he added.

Editor's note: Julian Cardillo '14 is a Sports staff writer for the Justice.