CSH's Szilagyi wins 3rd straight foil title

Cold Spring Harbor's A.J. Szilagyi won his third straight boys foil championship Saturday at the Nassau County Individual Fencing Tournament at Cold Spring Harbor.

Szilagyi defeated Ethan Levy of Great Neck South, 14-7, in the championship match. Szilagyi (30-1) avenged his lone loss of the season by defeating Levy.

"I was a little more nervous going into the finals because Ethan was my only loss during the season," Szilagyi said. "I know him, I fenced him a lot so I had some idea what I was going to do but I try to let the nerves get to me when I'm on the strip fencing."

The match was tied at 4 after two periods and Szilagyi said he made an adjustment which paid off as he outscored Levy 10-3 in the third period.

"I changed my timing a bit and I just started pulling ahead," he said. "I was being a little too defensive; I became a bit more aggressive and it was working."

Jack Greenfield (Oyster Bay) won the boys epee championship and Robert Leung (Jericho) won the boys sabre championship.

Stephanie Ying (Manhasset) won girls epee, Michelle Neiderman (Great Neck South) won girls sabre and Heather Szilagyi, A.J.'s older sister, won the girls foil championship, her first.

Great Neck South coach Robert C. Piraino was named boys coach of the year and he shared the girls coach of the year award with Manhasset's Leonid Kvurt.

The team sportsmanship awards went to the Wheatley boys and the Hewlett girls.

Li Ting Chang (Wheatley) won the Fencer's Fencer Award for boys and Leann Dillman (Oyster Bay) won for girls.