Tessy Udoh ’23 & Ollie Strasburg ’23
Computer science majors Tessy Udoh ’23 and Ollie Strasburg ’23 parried the competition at the NCAA fencing regional competition.
Udoh was named to the Midwest All-Region Team for women’s sabre while fellow-junior Strasburg was named All-Region for women’s epee.
“Part of the Denison experience is to work hard and play hard,” says Computer Science Professor Matt Kretchmar. “Our students can do a deep dive into a theoretical algorithm and turn around a few hours later to take on one of the best fencers in the nation.”
Udoh finished 14th in the sabre competition while Strasburg was 15th in epee at the NCAA Midwest Regional Championships on Saturday, March 12.
Kretchmar applauds the women’s devotion to their sport. “We purposely design our curriculum to encourage and promote a ‘life well-lived’. Yes, we craft challenging intellectual tasks for our students in computer science, but we recognize the importance of leaving space for students to develop their whole selves.”
“I’m really pleased with the recognition our fencers are starting to receive,” Coach Peter Grandbois commented. “The hard work is paying off, and one of the results of all that work is that our fencers are getting noticed.”
