On Tuesday, January 20, 2026, the Indian Hills fencing program hosted their senior night against Passaic Valley. Seniors Zach Brothers, Sean Delaney, Noah Park, and Rocco Pineault were all honored for their commitment to the program over the last few years.
Before any matches started, all the underclassmen fencers stood parallel to one another, and raised their sword to the teammate across from them. This created a tunnel pathway for the seniors to walk through one by one as they each got a round of applause. Senior Sean Delaney, a three-year epee, walked down the tunnel looking quite unique compared to the other three. Delaney was wearing Luke Skywalker’s Dagobah outfit from the sensational Star Wars Empire Strikes Back, where he met Jedi Master Yoda and trained to become one himself. Delaney comments, “A couple Halloweens ago I wore that costume. My mom always loved the costume and I thought it would be funny to do something that I love and she loves, which is why I dressed up as Luke.” Delaney wore the classic beige tank top with cargo pants with Yoda hanging out of his backpack, along with a glowing blue lightsaber.
Although there are no female fencing seniors, they still attended the event to support their seniors and congratulate them for their accomplishments. Sophomore saber, Jane Burdge comments, “The seniors this year have been great leaders and teammates. They’ve made us put in the work and try their best in every drill or exercise. Next year will definitely be different without them but I wish them luck in their future careers in college where I’m sure they will do their absolute best.” Each member of both the girls and boys fencing team were there to support each other, and to help each other improve at practice every day.
After matches concluded and the Braves secured their victory, Rocco Pineault, three year saber, was awarded the MVP by Coach Cleaver. Four year foil, Zach Brothers went undefeated, going 2-0, and four year foils, Noah Park and Sean Delaney both got into the win column.
As I was watching non-stop fencing matches throughout the duration of senior night, I felt so involved with the team. There was so much joy and passion being spread around the team that made it feel more than that: it felt like a real family. Everyone was cheering for one another, giving each other tips, supporting no matter what the outcome of the match was. I have never seen such a great group of hard work, effort, and dedication come together to form a community that makes anyone feel welcome. For a growing sport, I am personally glad that the Indian Hills fencing team is in the right hands with Coach Cleaver, Coach Brown, Coach Lucas, and all of the role models this team is making for the future.