COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., March 22, 2003 ¨C The Penn State fencing team currently stands in third place after racking up 103 points in the first day of action at the NCAA Championships, which are being held at the U.S. Air Force Academy¡¯s Cadet Field House in Colorado Springs. The Nittany Lions trail leader Notre Dame by five points and are only two behind second place St. John¡¯s. Ohio State rounds out the top four with 102 points.

Two-time All-American junior Heather Brosnan (Portland, Ore.) led the Lady Lions through the first day, winning 13 of her 14 bouts in the women¡¯s saber to move into second place. Senior Austin O¡¯Neill (Pound Ridge, N.Y.) is currently in eighth place after notching eight victories in the women¡¯s saber.

In the women¡¯s epee, freshman Katarzyna Trzopek (Warsaw, Poland) jumped into first place, posting 11 victories in her 14 bouts to put herself in an excellent position to challenge for the national title tomorrow. Senior Jessica Burke (Upper Marlboro, N.J.) is within striking distance after logging eight wins to move into eighth place.

Annekathrin Donath (Touber, Germany), another remarkable freshman for the Lady Lions, also recorded a productive first day, tallying 10 wins in her 14 women¡¯s foil bouts to occupy ninth place going into the final day of competition. Sophomore Meredith Chin (Wynnewood, Pa.) registered six wins, which was good enough to put her in 15th position.

Defending men¡¯s foil National Champion Nonpatat Panchan (Bangkok, Thailand) won 12 bouts to slip into second place, just slightly behind leader Nital Kfir of St. John¡¯s. Freshman Chris Miller (Salina, Kan.) won half of his 14 bouts to earn 12th place.

In the men¡¯s saber, team captain Alex Weber (Frieburg, Germany) is currently in the best position in eighth place after winning 10 of his 14 bouts. Freshman Marten Zagunis (Beaverton, Ore.) gathered seven wins, which put him in 12th place in the rankings.

Two-time All-American Adam Wiercioch (Gliwice, Poland), Penn State¡¯s only competitor in the men¡¯s epee, is holding his own in his bid for the national title after putting up 11 wins on the day to move into third place.

The first day of action consisted of the first four rounds of both the men¡¯s and women¡¯s brackets. Tomorrow, the men will complete the final three rounds beginning at 9 a.m. before the semifinals and finals commence at noon. Following the culmination of the men¡¯s tournament, the women will battle through their final three rounds beginning at 1 p.m. At 4 p.m., the women¡¯s champions will be crowned and the combined national champion will be determined based on the sums of each school¡¯s men¡¯s and women¡¯s team scores.

For complete results of the NCAA Fencing Championships, visit airforcesports.com.