Men's Fencing Wins First TitleFourth-place epeeist Tim Glass (16-7), foil champion Pat Gerard (18-4) and sabre champ Mike Sullivan (20-2) helped lead the men's fencing program to its first national title in 1977. The Irish finished the round-robin at Notre Dame's Joyce Center tied with NYU for first place (at 114 points), with a new fence-off tiebreaker used to declare a winner. Sullivan rallied to beat Miklos Benedek in the first bout (5-3) and an electric atmosphere encircled the strip as Gerard shut out Tom Valjasic (5-0, after splitting two earlier bouts 5-4) before being mobbed by the Notre Dame faithful. Glass never had to compete in the fence-off and head coach Mike DeCicco picked up his third of four national Coach of the Year awards.
The Joyce Center
The double-domed Joyce Center is home to the Fighting Irish basketball and volleyball teams in the newly renovated Purcell Pavilion. Gyms for fencing, boxing, and other sports are scattered throughout the facility. The center also plays host to campus-wide events such as Commencement, the Opening Day Mass, and Junior Parents Weekend activities. The building houses coaches and administrators’ offices, locker rooms, and, on the concourse, the Sports Heritage Hall of Fame.
The Joyce Center, named for Rev. Edmund Joyce, C.S.C., who served for 35 years as executive vice president alongside Rev. Theodore Hesburgh, C.S.C., has a new main entrance on its south side, which includes ticketing operations, a new Varsity Shop, and a hospitality club. It is connected to Rolfs Aquatic Center, which features a 50-meter swimming pool and a diving well for Notre Dame’s swimming and diving teams.
Learn more about the Joyce Center
