SoCal Swordfight 2024 - Event Wrap-Up and Tournament Results

SoCal Swordfight 2024, hosted at the OC Fair & Event Center - Costa Mesa, California from February 16-18, 2024, has marked another triumph in Historical European Martial Arts (HEMA). Building on the achievements of 2023, this year's event attracted 1,052 attendees from 5 countries, 33 states, and over 100 clubs, schools, or organizations.

Enthusiastic participants engaged in 1,747 thrilling tournament matches spread across 26 tournaments, showcasing their skills in various disciplines such as Longsword, Rapier, Rapier & Dagger, Saber, Singlestick, Smallsword, Cutting Competitions, and Cinquedea Dagger. The event featured 60 instructors, from across the country and around the worlds, presenting 110 hours of courses during the three days, providing an educational and immersive experience for attendees.

The success of SoCal Swordfight 2024 can be attributed to the dedication of over 70 volunteers, the support of 30+ sponsors and vendors, the helpful spirit of our HEMA community, and the incredible talent displayed by participants. The event not only surpassed the previous year in attendance and participation but also optimized the overall experience for attendees and participants based on valuable feedback.

As we prepare for SoCal Swordfight 2025, our commitment remains to enhance the event, making it not only a better experience for participants and attendees but also a more integral part of the local community. We aim to highlight local clubs, introduce new events, and bring in exciting vendors and sponsors to contribute to the flourishing HEMA community.

SoCal Swordfight 2024 - Tournament Results

This year's SoCal Swordfight hosted 26 unique tournaments across a variety of divisions, tiers and weapon sets, resulting in 1,747 matches and 11,245 exchanges. We added multiple tournaments to our Under Represented Genders (URG) and Under 18 (U18) divisions, and expanded competition tiers across many of our open divisions.

This year's Experimental Tournament featured a brand new weapon for us, the Cinquedea Dagger provided by Castille Armoury. It was interesting to see many of our fighters get their first feel for this weapon and watching their approach to its use adjust and develop throughout the event.

Full event results can be viewed on HEMA Scorecard, but we'd like to provide special recognition to all of our medalist below!

Jason Taylor Memorial Open Steel Longsword Tournaments

Open Steel Longsword - Tier A

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Samuel Ryals Gem City Duelists Society
Silver Medalist Jonathan Paulino Philadelphia Common Fencers Guild
Bronze Medalist Chandler Brown En Garde Fencing
Finalist Jonathan Ying SoCal Swords

Open Steel Longsword - Tier B

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Sean Graham Blackfriar's School of Fence
Silver Medalist Gabriel Lake Sacramento Historical Fencing Academy
Bronze Medalist Michael French Reno HEMA Speakeasy
Finalist Frank Torkel Masterless Fencing

Open Steel Longsword - Tier C

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Andy Plymate Bridge City Blades
Silver Medalist Sterling Baldwin San Diego Swordfighters
Bronze Medalist Michael Schachtner Tattershall School of Defense
Finalist Cody Shepherd Masterless Fencing

Open Steel Longsword - Unrated

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Muqing Niu Unaffiliated
Silver Medalist Kalan Miurrelle SoCal Swords
Bronze Medalist Seth Keller Academy of Arms, Los Angeles
Finalist Louie Zhong Tosetti Institute of MMA and Fitness

Open Rapier Tournaments at SoCal Swordfight

Open Rapier & Dagger - Tier A

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Robert Childs Black Tigers
Silver Medalist Arthur Henry Sacramento Historical Fencing Academy
Bronze Medalist Chandler Brown En Garde Fencing
Finalist Justinder Singh Burning Sun Historical Swordsmanship

Open Rapier & Dagger - Tier B

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Pike Pullen Swordwind NYHFA, Chalotte
Silver Medalist Scott Bradley Heartland HEMA
Bronze Medalist Tom Ostrowski Einhorn LA Historical Fencing Arts
Finalist PJ Stahl Wisconsin Historical Fencing Association

Open Single Rapier - Tier A

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Jonathan Han En Garde Fencing
Silver Medalist Myles Cupp SoCal Swords
Bronze Medalist Derek Gill SoCal Swords
Finalist Kai Cummings Bozeman European Martial Arts Project

Open Single Rapier - Tier B

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Bailey Fatool Swordplay LA
Silver Medalist Caleb DeWolf Crossroads Swords
Bronze Medalist Alexander Williamson The Forge Western Martial Arts
Finalist Jason Hughes San Diego

Open Steel Saber Tournaments at SoCal Swordfight

Open Steel Saber - Tier A

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Robert Childs Black Tigers
Silver Medalist Kristofer Stanson Stockholms Stigmän
Bronze Medalist Christopher Yang Cymbrogi School of Western Martial Arts
Finalist Yanwen Xu Italian Renaissance Swordsmanship Academy

Open Steel Saber - Tier B

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Scott Bradley Heartland HEMA
Silver Medalist Jack Murray Dallas School of Historical Fencing
Bronze Medalist Matthew Lawrence SoCal Swords
Finalist Patrick Tarzi Noble Science Academy

Open Steel Saber - Tier C

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Joshua Ames Lonin League
Silver Medalist Mitchell Allen Lonin League
Bronze Medalist Justin Reimer Lonin League
Finalist Alex Palmer Davenriche European Martial Arts School

Open Smallsword at SoCal Swordfight 2024

Open Smallsword Tournament

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Arthur Henry Sacramento Historical Fencing Academy
Silver Medalist Tristan Fackler Loyal Order of the Sword
Bronze Medalist Adam Simmons Phoenix Society of Historical Swordsmanship
Finalist Daniel Aldridge Diamond Rose Academie D'armes

2024 Experimental Tournament at SoCal Swordfight

Cinquedea Dagger

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Samuel Ryals Gem City Duelists Society
Silver Medalist Sheik Bacchus Schola St George, DFW
Bronze Medalist Jason Smith Valley's Heart HEMA
Finalist Andy Plymate Bridge City Blades

Under Represented Genders (URG) Steel Longsword Tournaments

URG Steel Longsword - Tier A

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Rashelle DeBolt Noble Science Academy
Silver Medalist Clare Lahey Einhorn LA Historical Fencing Arts
Bronze Medalist Harriet Coates Phoenix Society of Historical Swordsmanship
Finalist Elizabeth Pedersen Sacramento Historical Fencing Academy

URG Steel Longsword - Tier B

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Kathryn McLean Lonin League
Silver Medalist Lacey Cupp SoCal Swords
Bronze Medalist Iz Kimseylove Lonin League
Finalist Emily Eng Unaffiliated

Under Represented Genders (URG) Tournaments added in 2024

URG Rapier & Dagger

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Mengxi Wang Einhorn LA Historical Fencing Arts
Silver Medalist Kari Baker Mordhau Historical Combat
Bronze Medalist Clare Lahey Einhorn LA Historical Fencing Arts
Finalist Bethany Hinson SoCal Swords

URG Steel Saber

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Rashelle DeBolt Noble Science Academy
Silver Medalist Brittany Reeves Mordhau Historical Combat
Bronze Medalist Kayla Mouriz Academy of Arms, Los Angeles
Finalist Harriet Coates Phoenix Society of Historical Swordsmanship

Open Longsword Cutting Competitions at SoCal Swordfight 2024

Open Longsword Cutting - Tier A

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Phillip Martin Phoenix Society of Historical Swordsmanship
Silver Medalist Nolan Duino SoCal Swords
Bronze Medalist Myles Cupp SoCal Swords
Finalist Sean Dickinson SoCal Swords

Open Longsword Cutting - Tier B

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Kyle Peltier Swordwind NYHFA, Chalotte
Silver Medalist William Li Academie Duello
Bronze Medalist Jason Hughes San Diego Swordfighters
Finalist Sihong Fu Academie Duello

Open Longsword Cutting - Tier C

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Dimitri Sanborn Ironwood Historic Swordsmanship
Silver Medalist Christian Cross Unaffiliated
Bronze Medalist Mitchell Allen Lonin League
Finalist Benjamin Davis Academie Duello

Open Arming Sword Cutting Competitions - 2024

Arming Sword Cutting - Tier A

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Phillip Martin Phoenix Society of Historical Swordsmanship
Silver Medalist Ryan Shapiro Tattershall School of Defense
Bronze Medalist Chris Fields Sterling Armoury
Finalist Matthew Roche Lonin League

Arming Sword Cutting - Tier B

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Christian Cross Unaffiliated
Silver Medalist Caleb DeWolf Crossroads Swords
Bronze Medalist Epifanio Zamudio Mordhau Historical Combat
Finalist Timo Elliott Einhorn LA Historical Fencing Arts

U18 Tournaments at SoCal Swordfight 2024

Longsword - U18 Open Synthetic

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Isaac Benzing Mordhau Historical Combat
Silver Medalist Christian Peralta En Garde Fencing
Bronze Medalist Sawyer Freschi F3 Sword Academy
Finalist Kevin Vega Bautista Unaffiliated

Rapier (Single) - U18 Open

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Christian Peralta En Garde Fencing
Silver Medalist Sawyer Freschi F3 Sword Academy
Bronze Medalist Ivor Levinthal Einhorn LA Historical Fencing Arts
Finalist Isaac Benzing Mordhau Historical Combat

Singlestick - U18 Open

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Christian Peralta En Garde Fencing
Silver Medalist Ivor Levinthal Einhorn LA Historical Fencing Arts
Bronze Medalist Sawyer Freschi F3 Sword Academy
Finalist Isaac Benzing Mordhau Historical Combat

Longsword Cutting - U18 Open

Place Fighter Name Club/School Name
Gold Medalist Ivor Levinthal Einhorn LA Historical Fencing Arts
Silver Medalist Logan Zuniga Kron Martial Arts, Fullerton
Bronze Medalist Sawyer Freschi F3 Sword Academy
Finalist Isaac Benzing Mordhau Historical Combat

SoCal Swordfight 2024 AGGREGATE TEAM AWARD

The Aggregate Team Award is meant to highlight the groups who attend SoCal Swordfight with a team showcasing both Performance & Depth. Performance: Ability to make it to the top of the tournaments. Depth: The combined performance of the school as a whole, rather than a single stand-out individual of the school.

SoCal Swords

Gold Medalist

Lonin

Silver Medalist

Einhorn Los Angeles

Bronze Medalist

San Diego Swordfighters

Finalist