Despite late start, Hun senior is among top sabre fencers
By: Bob Nuse
It didn’t take long for Barrington Lloyd to make an impact with the Hun School fencing team.
"He joined us as a sophomore and from his very first time at practice he immediately worked as hard as anybody," said Hun co-coach Eric Wolarsky. "He would come 15 minutes early to practice and clean up the (practice area) before anyone else arrived. He has an incredible work ethic. And he’s beloved by the kids in the school.
"I knew of him through rumor, but once you meet him you have to be impressed by him. He was always a hard worker and he started fencing varsity by the middle of his sophomore year on sheer athletic ability and desire. Now he has the total game and he’s one of the strongest sabre fencers in the state."
Lloyd has developed over the last three years into one of the top sabre fencers in New Jersey. And combined with Hun’s other two top sabre fencers, Matt Kolasa and Justin Nealis, they are one of the state’s best sabre teams.
Lloyd arrived at Hun as a sophomore after attending West Windsor-Plainsboro High as a freshman. He wasn’t sure how he would spend his winter sports season, but eventually settled on fencing.
"I started off because my Spanish teacher (Hun co-coach Rey Gonzalez) knew I needed a winter sport and I was toying with going out for wrestling," said Lloyd, a West Windsor resident. "I wasn’t sure if I wanted to wrestle, so I decided to try fencing. I’m actually obsessive about it now.
"Most people start during their freshman year or earlier. But I didn’t get to Hun until my sophomore year and I went to West Windsor before that and we didn’t have a fencing team. So I started late."
Whatever ground Lloyd may have given to other fencers with a late start has certainly been made up over the last three years. On Monday he helped the Raiders to their first win ever over Voorhees, improving to 5-1 in the process.
"We’re having a good year this year and we’ve done some things the team has never done before," said Lloyd, whose individual record is 38-7 this season. "We had a great Cetrullo tournament and finished third, which is the best finish the school has ever had. So we’re happy about the season."
Lloyd has been a big part of that success. In fact, it’s the example that he and senior co-captain Nick Marchuk have set that has helped the team become one of the best in the state.
"Barrington is one of those people who is never late and never has an excuse," Wolarsky said. "He is there to lead. He’s a co-captain with Nick and they are both leaders on the strip. We hope more of our young fencers will follow the example Barrington sets.
"I’ll see him get down in a bout, 2-0, which is where a lot of people would just fold. But his competitiveness says ‘I can win,’ and he does what he needs to do to get back in the match and win. He has that ability through his maturity to not lose."
When he’s not fencing, Lloyd can be found performing. He plays the piano for church choir and the Hun jazz band. And he also sings a cappella and with the jazz band. It makes for a pretty hectic schedule at time.
"The first semester we had a lot of rehearsals with the group, piano and jazz band," Lloyd said. "Sundays are dedicated to the church group. The only thing I don’t really do is sleep. Maybe when we get to spring break I’ll dedicate a couple of days to sleeping."
And once he graduates from Hun he plans to continue dedicating himself to fencing. He’s already been accepted to Harvard and Washington University in St. Louis. Harvard has one of the top fencing programs in the nation, while other schools he has applied to may create a need to find an outside club as a fencing outlet.
"If the school doesn’t have a team or a club team, there are a lot of clubs in the areas where I can go to fence," Lloyd said. "Most of the schools that I’ve applied to have a fencing team or a club team. I’ve been accepted to Washington University in St. Louis and Harvard. I’ve talked to the coaches and if I can, I’d like to keep fencing."
But before college, his first concern is closing out this Hun season on a good note.
"I have a lot faith in our team that we can do well," Lloyd said. "We have a couple more meets and the state tournament. Hopefully we can win the rest of the meets and also win at states."
No matter what happens, it’s been a great three years for Lloyd, who is glad he chose fencing over wrestling.
"I definitely wouldn’t enjoy the bus rides as much," he said. "The bad thing is that a lot of them are long, but the good thing is we get free McDonald’s and get to hang out on the bus. It’s a great atmosphere with the guys and the girls on the team. It’s like one big family."
This year, it’s one big successful family and Barrington Lloyd has done his part to contribute.

