Nevertheless, van Leeuwen lost his first foil bout of the season--to Benet, 5-3.
"It's a strong win," an obviously excited Benet said after his match. "I was just going in and fencing."
William Shipman, the Brandeis coach, was equally impressed by Benet's victory.
"I'm very pleased with our foil team. Beating Kwame is always an accomplishment," he said.
Van Leeuwen came back to win his next two bouts and go 2-1. "The loss was unexpected but I tend to get better as the season progresses," van Leeuwen said.
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The difficulty of the men's competition also increases this weekend as they face Columbia, Princeton, St. John's and MIT.