Second CNF Assignment
Emily Pasternak says she began fencing her freshman year of High School because she’s “always been inspired by ass-kicking, sword-wielding heroines.” She giggles as she says this, wrinkling her nose. Emily, petite and feminine, does not resemble a stereotypical warrior, but then again, she says, “Fencing’s not really like that at all.”
At practice, two days before Northwestern fences arch-rivals Notre Dame and Ohio State, Coach Laurie Schiller thinks the girls are ready for the tournament, but worries about Emily. “Emily’s problem is focus. There’s nothing wrong with her talent. Emily’s a little...” he trails off, fluttering his hands by his ears, “Emily’s a little ditzy sometimes. But when she focuses, she fences well.”
Emily is one of the last girls to finish dressing for practice. The white knickers and fencing jacket (lamé) that cover her slightly curvy figure are far form glamorous. “My uniform gets hot and annoying,” Emily confesses. She stops with her lamé only half-fastened and shouts across the room to teammate Sophie Eustis. “Are you coming dancing at the Keg tonight?” Emily asks, her blue eyes twinkling.
“Of course!” Sophie replies.
“Go fence!” Coach Schiller reprimands them. Emily pairs up with Lauren Dunn, the team captain, and the two begin to spar. Emily lunges, thrusting her sword at Lauren’s midsection. Lauren scurries backward, parries the attack, and leaps toward Emily.
“Oh my God!” Emily squeals as she’s hit on the arm, caught off-guard.
“That’s OK,” Lauren tells her, “I never expect to get hit on the fly.” Lauren demonstrates the attack again, and shows Emily how to block it.
After a few touches the girls suddenly stop fencing; though each still holds her sword, the weapons are temporarily forgotten. Emily and Lauren shake their hips and roll their shoulders as they turn in small circles, grinning from ear to ear. This is the Saber Dance, the latest fencing team joke.
The dancing attracts the attention of Marco, a fellow saberist, who stops fighting his own opponent to watch. Marco teases Emily about the dance, and tauntingly whacks her across her face mask with his sword. Emily turns her back to Lauren and playfully smacks him back. Sophie calls this “the moment when the attention span breaks down.” Emily and Marco flirtatiously tap their swords on each other’s masks until Emily shrieks and covers her head with her arms, ending the spat.
After practice Emily talks to me about her fencing. “Fencing is as much a mental sport as it is a physical sport,” she explains, “and that’s hard. In competition I over-think things and…Hey!” A boy Emily knows walks up to us.
“You were going to call me on Friday,” he says.
“It’s not my fault,” Emily protests, “you were supposed to call me to remind me to call you!” Emily tosses her long curly hair over her shoulder and resumes talking about how the pressure of competition makes her nervous. “Sometimes I scare myself so badly I freeze,” she says.
Even before one of her easier bouts at Notre Dame, Emily huddles in a corner, begging Lauren for tips about fencing her next opponent. Wide-eyed and filled with anxiety, Emily asks, “How does she fence? What should I do? How did you beat her?”
“Well,” Lauren replies, “try to hit her with your sword. And try not to let her hit you.” Emily laughs at this teasing and wrinkles her nose again. She knows she fences well when she clears her head and controls her emotions. It’s how she does this that Emily can’t answer. Nevertheless, at Notre Dame, Emily finds her focus and leaves with fourteen wins and four losses, the best record on the NU saber squad.