FILIPINO fencing prodigy Samantha Catantan of Penn State University came up short on her bid to make a podium finish after she placed 11th overall out of 24 participants in the 2023 US NCAA Fencing Championship on Sunday (Monday in Manila) at the Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.

It marked the second season that the 21-year-old Catantan did not advance in the semifinal round after her amazing feat as a rookie in 2021 when she earned a bronze medal in the said tournament.

“Of course I’m really upset that I didn’t reach the place I was hoping to get to,” Catantan told The Manila Times in a message exchange.

“However, I was somewhat still satisfied with the way I fence. Ang hirap po talaga, lahat ng kalaban malakas.”

“It was a very good tournament to see where I am at and I think I’m in pretty good position because all the matches I’ve lost were all close fights,” added Catantan, who still has two years of eligibility of playing in the US NCAA including a fifth year if she decides to take up master’s class.

Lauren Scruggs of Harvard won the gold medal after she bested May Tieu of Princeton 15-7 in the finals. In the semifinal round, Tieu defeated Singaporean top seed Amita Berthier of Notre Dame 15-10, while Scruggs downed Maia Weintraub of Princeton 15-9.

Tieu got the silver medal, while Berthier and Weintraub received the bronze medals.

In the first round of the tournament, Catantan posted a 3-4 win-loss record, then a 3-1 card in Round 2. In the third round, she managed to get just a single win in four bouts, and was 2-2 in Round 4.

Catantan gave it all in Round 5 as she won three of four matches, but it wasn’t enough as only the top four fencers out of 24 advanced to the Direct Eliminations medal round.

Looking back, Catantan said the bouts that were heartbreaking for her were the ones she lost by a single point. Her 11th place finish was no better from her ninth spot in last year’s event.