Bergen County fencing has a new chapter in its growing rivalry.
One year after Don Bosco Prep claimed the county crown and with the Ironmen sitting atop the state rankings, Bergen Tech flipped the script on the biggest stage. After suffering a season-opening loss to Don Bosco Prep, Bergen Tech responded when it mattered most, knocking off the state’s No. 1 team to reclaim the Bergen County Tournament title and reassert themselves as a championship force.
Bergen Tech earned 43 wins across all three weapons, earning 242 touches scored, which was 17 more than second place finisher, Don Bosco Prep, ranked No. 1 in the NJ.com Top 20. Teaneck finished in third place to round out the top three.
“The day went really well all around, everyone fenced solidly,” Bergen Tech head coach Gaspar Lesznik said. “There were a few slips in the middle of the day, but that is as expected when a bout is lost here or there, other than that I am very pleased with the performance from the guys today.”
Bergen Tech has been a top three team in the state all season long, and has continued to make a statement ever since its current eight-game winning streak started in the middle of December.
Bergen Tech finished first overall in the sabre weapon, earning the team title for the second straight season led by Nathaniel Ng, Zachary Powell, and senior Gabriele Herr.
“I think we did quite well,” Herr said. “Two of our seniors from last year on the sabre squad graduated, so we had some new guys step up which is great to see. Same thing for the rest of the team, everyone has grown into their roles and continue to get better as the season progresses, the results have shown that.”
Herr finished first in the individual sabre weapon a season ago, but earned a second place finish this time around, after independent fencer, Hakan Aydogdu of Dwight Morrow, took the title in a fence-off, which included Jaxson Niebergall of Don Bosco Prep.
Bergen Tech also earned the team foil title with a squad that featured Eugene Lee, Nick Rozenblit, and junior Brian Bai, who took home the individual title in the weapon.
Don Bosco Prep earned second in the weapon, followed by Fair Lawn who took home third place.
“I usually go to club every single day,” Bai said. “I dedicate most of my time to fencing, I feel like this individual title is deserved. As far as the team as a whole, everyone put in the effort and we all deserve the title today.”
The trio of Joseph Evans, Joshua Siyanko, and Viktor Higgins took home the team epee title for Don Bosco Prep, followed by Bergen Tech who finished second, and Indian Hills who earned third.
Independent fencer, Seth Sverdlov of Midland Park, earned his second straight individual epee title at the Bergen County Tournament, as Siyanko finished second in the weapon, followed by Andrew Zeng of Bergen Tech who came in third.
Bergen Tech did more than win back a county title — it delivered a statement. Beating the top-ranked team in the state provided redemption for an early-season setback and reinforced the Knights’ place among the elite as the postseason draws closer.
With momentum back on its side, Bergen Tech leaves the Bergen County Tournament having reshaped the conversation moving forward.
FINAL RESULTS
OVERALL
1–Bergen Tech 43
2–Don Bosco Prep 38
3–Teaneck 31 4–Fair Lawn 29
5–Ramapo 20
6–Indian Hills 19
7–Northern Highlands 9
TEAM RESULTS
SABRE
1–Bergen Tech
- Gabriele Herr
- Nathaniel Ng
- Zachary Powell
2–Fair Lawn
- Lucas Sokolov
- Marcus Kuriyama
- Nolan Chien
3–Teaneck
- Gilbert Rubio
- Spencer Hankerson
- Trevor Wu
4–Ramapo
- Ben Moskal
- Logan Fletcher
- Ethan Ao
5–Don Bosco Prep
- Ashton Gaida
- Jaxson Niebergall
- Zachary Costa
6–Indian Hills
- Asher Menken
- Daniel Ivron
- Sean Mulligan
7–Northern Highlands
- Jonathan DeGregorio
- Peyton Russ
- Pranav Gogineni
FOIL
1–Bergen Tech
- Brian Bai
- Eugene Lee
- Nick Rozenblit
2–Don Bosco Prep
- Gabriel Diaz
- Gianzack Chariell
- James Vella
- Theron Rundle
3–Fair Lawn
- Dary Manzueta
- Jonathan Bas
- Justin Nam
4–Teaneck
- Ayden Perez
- Diogo Ontiveros
- Tiago Ontiveros
- Vicken Oghlian
5–Northern Highlands
- Kanan Patel
- Ryan Vahid
- Nicholas Mesuk
6–Indian Hills
- Dominic Mason
- Henry Seavers
- Noah Park
- Paul D’Alessandro
- Nicholas Mason
7–Ramapo
- John Mattesich
- Kyle Clark
EPEE
1–Don Bosco Prep
- Joseph Evans
- Joshua Siyanko
- Viktor Higgins
2–Bergen Tech
- Aiden Kwon
- Andrew Zeng
- Landon Prevost
3–Indian Hills
- Ben Wuensch
- James Cleaver
- Sean Delaney
4–Teaneck
- Charles Estrada
- Darius Gantt
- Elliot Carman
5–Ramapo
- Anas Azizogli
- Luay Tinawi
- Patrick Riccobene
6–Fair Lawn
- Charles Villegas
- Daniel Khramtsov
- Killian Lur’ye
7–Northern Highlands
- Alex Ash
- Joseph Lee
- Vincent Kyung
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
SABRE
1–Hakan Aydogdu, Dwight Morrow
2–Gabriele Herr, Bergen Tech
3–Jaxson Niebergall, Don Bosco Prep
4–Nathaniel Ng, Bergen Tech
5–Zachary Powell, Bergen Tech
6–Nolan Chien, Fair Lawn
7–Ethan Ao, Renaissance Fencing Club
8–Spencer Hankerson, Teaneck
FOIL
1–Brian Bai, Bergen Tech
2–Eugene Lee, Bergen Tech
3–Jonathan Bas, Fair Lawn
4–Diogo Ontiveros, Teaneck
5–Gianzack Chariell, Don Bosco Prep
6–Justin Nam, Fair Lawn
7–Noah Park, Indian Hills
EPEE
1–Seth Sverdov, Midland Park
2–Joshua Siyanko, Don Bosco Prep
3–Andrew Zeng, Bergen Tech
4–Joseph Evans, Don Bosco Prep
5T–Luay Tinawi, Ramapo
5T–Oliver Schauer, Park Ridge
7–Elliot Carman, Teaneck
8–Aiden Kwon, Bergen Tech
