This past weekend, BUKA competed at the 18th Harvard Shoryuhai Taikai. Harvard is the largest intercollegiate kendo tournament in the Americas, and tends to draw competitors from both coasts as well as overseas. Here are the results and highlights of the weekend:
Day 1 – Individuals
The first day of the Harvard Shoryuhai was individuals. BU sent 21 competitors of varying skill levels to compete in the single-elimination event:
- Jessica Alexandria
- Genevieve Boudreau
- Raymond Feng
- Kayla Gillespie
- Reina Iwase
- Brandon Kesselly
- Christina Lupoli
- Jennifer McEldoon
- Billy Pratama
- Priank Ravichandar
- Taryn Ross
- Shawn Shou
- Yevgeniy Temchenko
- Lucien Thomas
- Deniz Varol
- Kathie Zhang
- Julie Zhu
- Ye Wang
- Youming Ye
- John Yi
- Joseph Yi
Results
Unfortunately, none of BU’s members were able to place this tournament.
Highlights
- Club Captain John Yi advanced to the Quarterfinal round before being eliminated!
Day 2 – Teams
The second day was teams. BU sent 3 5-man teams – A, B, and C – to compete in a 24-team round robin.
A
- Senpo: Brandon Kesselly
- Jiho: Lucien Thomas
- Chuken: Shawn Shou
- Fukusho: Jessica Alexandria
- Taisho: John Yi
B
- Senpo: Reina Iwase
- Jiho: Yevgeniy Temchenko
- Chuken: Joseph Yi
- Fukusho: Julie Zhu
- Taisho: Raymond Feng
C
- Senpo: Genevieve Boudreau
- Jiho: Taryn Ross
- Chuken: Kayla Gillespie
- Fukusho: Christina Lupoli
- Taisho: Priank Ravichandar
Results
- 3rd Place – Boston University A
BU A was the only team to advance, winning it’s round robin group after 5 wins and 0 losses. BU A placed 3rd overall after a nail-biting match against University of California San Diego.
Highlights
- BU A placed 3rd overall!
- BU A won its round robin group 5-0!
- C Team member Christina Lupoli scored her first tournament point!
This year, Shoryuhai was a trying experience. For many of us, it was our first time competing or our first Shoryuhai. For many of us – mostly the A team – it was our last Shoryuhai, and we fought with pride and ambition. We did our absolute best to make it to where we were and our defeat was by a single point in a very memorable match. Regardless of the results, we are proud of our achievements, and we are proud of our younger members. We realize that we may have left some tough shoes to fill for them, but we have faith that they will persevere come next year’s tournament. BU Kendo is not done yet! Faito!