Mountain Pacific Sports Federation

MPSF Fencing Annual Awards

3/30/2026 9:00:06 AM

Photo: Katherine Kim (by: UCSD Athletics)

   
UC San Diego sophomore Katherine Kim (Tustin, CA) placed third at the 2026 NCAA West Regional and was the champion in foil competition at the MPSF Championship to earn first team all-conference and second team all-region honors. Kim helped the Triton women defend their MPSF Team Championship. Her sophomore season concluded with an impressive 11th-place finish (top-half of the field) at the NCAA Championship to become just the second female fencer in UC San Diego history to earn multiple All-American honors (first since 1997). On November 25, Kim was named MPSF Fencer of the Week after taking down a former NCAA Champion, a pair of fellow All-Americans, and ultimately seven top-10 opponents during the West Invitational.  Kim is the first-ever female fencer to earn multiple MPSF Fencer of the year awards, and is UC San Diego’s only all-time female recipient of the honor.
   
UC San Diego freshman Piper Randolph (Solana Beach, CA) took third-place in foil competition in her MPSF Championship debut to earn second team all-conference honors, while helping the Tritons defend their MPSF title. She placed sixth in the NCAA West Regionals for all-region honors, and went on to NCAA’s where she placed 22nd. Her wins at NCAA’s included defeating eventual All-Americans Kristina Petrova (Yale, 5th), Josephina Conway (Notre Dame, 6th) and Kimberly Jang (Penn, 10th). Randolph went 11-0 at the Penn Invitational (Jan. 17-18), becoming the first Triton to go undefeated at an event in at least the last three seasons. In the process, she helped the Tritons to their first-ever team win over No. 8 Penn, and proceeded to earn the MPSF Fencer of the Week award. Randolph is UC San Diego’s third MPSF Women’s Newcomer of the Year recipient (Alice Lan-2025, Rafaella Gomes-2022).
   
Air Force senior Jack Griffith (Naples, FL) was the 2026 NCAA West Regional Champion in foil competition and then placed second the next day at the MPSF Championships for first team all-conference honors and his third career conference medal. He also led the Falcons to their first-ever conference title. Griffith was then named All-American for the second time after an 11^th-place national finish and leading Air Force to a 16^th-place team finish at NCAA’s. He posted a perfect 24-0 record across eight teams faced at Northwestern’s Schiller Duels (Jan. 31-Feb. 1), highlighted by a 3-0 mark against the defending and eventual NCAA Champion Notre Dame. He was named MPSF Fencer of the Week for his incredible results in Evanston, IL. Griffith becomes a three-time MPSF annual award recipient, and the first-ever on the men’s side to earn multiple MPSF Fencer of the Year honors.
   
UC San Diego freshman Nurzhan Abzhanov (Almaty, Kazakhstan) was the MPSF Epee Champion in his debut collegiate championship event, following a second-place finish at regionals with an 11-1 record. Abzhanov was a first team All-MPSF and all-region honoree, and qualified for the NCAA Championship where he earned All-American honors. He went 12-3 at the Penn Invitational (Jan. 17-18), including a win over NJIT's Paul Veltrup, the top-ranked epee fencer in the country at the time. Abzhanov was named MPSF Fencer of the Week following the   competition in Philadelphia. Abzhanov finished his initial collegiate season with a 25-15 record (.625).  The Tritons have won three-straight MPSF Men’s Newcomer of the Year awards (Abzhanov-2026, Dayus Gohel-2025, Hananiah So-2024).  
   
UC San Diego eighth-year Head Coach Juan Ignacio Calderón guided the Tritons to four individual MPSF titles, along with a repeat of the women’s conference team championship.  MPSF Women’s Fencer of the Year Katherine Kim was the foil champion and went on for an 11th-place finish (top-half of the field) at NCAA to become just the second female fencer in UC San Diego history to earn multiple All-American honors (first since 1997). MPSF Men’s Newcomer of the Year Nurzhan Abzhanov was the MPSF Epee Champion and earned All-American honors after reaching the NCAA field. Sunny Sharma was the Tritons’ third All-American. Other Triton conference champions included Zara Fearns for the third time in women’s sabre, as well as Jacob Levy in men’s foil. MPSF Women’s Newcomer of the Year Piper Randolph also reached NCAA’s in foil, after a sixth-place regional finish and third-place result in the MPSF. This is the second MPSF Coach of the Year award for Calderón (2024).
   
Air Force fifth-year Assistant Coach Adi Nott, as the Falcon foil coach, qualified three fencers   for the NCAA Championships. Melissa Kline advanced on the women’s side, while MPSF Fencer of the Year and first team All-MPSF Jack Griffith along with second team all-conference honoree Richard Li competed in men’s competition. Griffith was named All-American for the second time after 12 wins and an 11^th-place national finish, while the Air Force men placed 16^th as a team at NCAA. Li posted eight wins while Kline placed 18^th individually with seven wins at NCAA. Nott helped guide the Air Force men to their first-ever MPSF team championship. This is the second career MPSF Assistant Coach of the Year award for Nott, and third for Air Force (Nott-2026, 2023; Sebastien Dos Santos-2025).