The Detroit men’s and women’s fencing seasons are set to kick off in 2025. There are plenty of expectations and new faces for each team.
UDM is coached by Michael Ramlow. He is the head coach of both the men’s team and the women’s team. Ramlow is a 20-year fencing veteran with five years of professional coaching experience. He started at UDM in 2022. He was also a USA Fencing referee from 2021-2022. Ramlow has a holistic approach to how he manages the team.
Ramlow says, “Fencing doesn’t just require physical strength, technical excellence, or quick thinking. It requires all three at the same time.”
The 2024-2025 season begins with exciting events that will test the heart of the fencing team. This season will have a few main events. On Jan. 25, there will be the DeCicco Duals in South Bend, Ind.. Then on Feb. 1 and Feb. 2 there will be the Northwestern Duals on the campus of Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill.
These early competitions in the season will provide valuable experience and help the team to gauge the progress of the UDM key players, helping Ramlow adjust players’ techniques and strategies needed for the rest of the season.
There are many standouts for the men’s team. UDM sophomore Nathan Mysiorek whose hometown is Hettange-Grande, France, started fencing when he was only six years old. In high school, he managed to come in second place by team at the Saber d’Or in Tarbes on the national circuit. Mysiorek decided to come to UDM for a few different reasons.
Mysiorek said, “I came to UDM because it was a small school and being from France, English is not my native language, so that appealed to me.”
Another sophomore on the UDM team is, Arturo Rangel. Rangel is from Tijuana Baja California, Mexico and he specialise in Epee. He started fencing in 2016 when he was recruited by scouts in Mexico. Rangel wanted to come to UDM, for not only fencing, but for their great engineering program and strong relationship with the automotive industry.
Rangel said, “Definitely one of my main motivations to come here was the mechanical engineering program, as well as the fencing team.”
The women’s side is led by senior captain Hannah Benford. In 2022, Benford had 16 wins and 38 losses, averaging a winning percentage of 29%. Statistically, she has made drastic improvements.
At the 2024 Central Collegiate Fencing Championships, Benford finished with a perfect 3-0 record, which led Detroit Mercy to a 5-4 win over Wayne State in the sabre competition.
“It was quite a bittersweet moment since I was friends with all the girls, but it was the fact that I had a victory over all three of them that made it memorable,” said Benford. Benford said.
Player development has evolved but with that fluctuation in the program’s enrollment is noted. In the 2021-2022 season, five women were on the team. In the next season, four women were on the team.
As of the 2024-2025 season, there are nine women on the team ranging in weapon usage. With the substantial increase in player enrollment and versatility than in previous years, it can be determined that the team will prevail.
