Heading into the Ivy League Fencing Championships, senior epee Ketki Ketkar ’26 didn’t even know that she was competing to make program history.
At the championships, which took place from Feb. 7-8, the Red competed against six other Ivy foes, with Ketkar finishing 8-1 in the epee category. On the second day, she finished with an impressive 4-1 record — good for an overall 12-2 record (85.7%). She was awarded 61 total touches and allowed 36, good for a +25 indicator, an exceedingly dominant score.
With the victory, Ketkar became the first individual champion for women’s fencing at any conference championship.
“I was also focusing on helping the team do as best as we could,” Ketkar told The Sun. “It was an amazing feeling when I found out I won since I had been pretty close in the past years and had finally achieved my goal.”
Ketkar, who earned a bronze medal at the 2025 USA Fencing Summer Nationals, took on the championships while coming off a right hip and lower back injury that held her back from competing in the past. She explained that she has been “doing a lot better” than she expected coming off the injury.
"It's been great to achieve this result in my senior year,” Ketkar said. “I honestly had a bit of a tough start to the collegiate season but kept working and have been able to get some strong results, but I’m still focused on the remainder of the season for now.”
Overall, the Red finished last at the meet, with a notable performance from junior sabre Isabela Carvalho, who posted a 10-5 overall record in the sabre category, good for sixth overall. Carvalho will represent the Red on the All-Ivy Second Team for sabre and Ketkar will be a part of the All-Ivy First Team for epee.
Ketkar plans to continue competing “nationally and internationally” following the collegiate season. She hopes to take some time off to rest and then continue her training, using the collegiate competitions as “good preparation” for the bigger competitions.
Up next for the Red, 12 competitors will be sent to the NCAA Northeast Regional on March 8. Coverage of the tournament will be available on ESPN+.
Zeinab Faraj is a member of the class of 2028 in the College of Arts and Sciences. She is a features editor on the 143rd Editorial Board and was the assistant sports editor of the 143rd Editorial Board. You can reach her at zfaraj@cornellsun.com.
