Commentary
Injury provides backdrop on gutsy performance
MATT KRUEGER Sports Reporter
Watching Mike Licata take second place in the Bear's Challenge fencing tournament Saturday wasn't exactly like seeing Willis Reed limp his way onto the court at Madison Square Garden to lead the Knicks to victory. But his gutsy performance elicited plenty of admiration.

The Getzville resident, competing in his first tournament and hobbled by a calf injury, battled his way to the finals on one leg and absolutely no experience. His demise, a 15-14 loss to Eileen McIver in the gold-medal bout, ended a day of inspiring determination.

One of the older fencers in the tournament, Licata out-witted many of his younger foes, including yours truly, with a cerebral game of weakness finding and exploiting. He twisted in shoulders out of the way of oncoming attacks as if his waist were a swivel. He crouched, ducked and bent his body to give opponents little target area. In our pool bout, which Licata won, 5-2, I found myself growing more and more frustrated as my tip continued to miss his torso by half an inch. His distance control was superb and maddening.

Licata emerged from his pool bouts with a perfect 6-0 record and a plus-21 indicator to earn the second seed in the tournament bracket. His good fortune surprised many of the competitors and officials, since first-timers rarely advance deep into any tournament.

When he wasn't parrying and thrusting his way up and down the fencing strip, Licata was playing the part of cheerleader for his 14-year-old daughter, Victoria, another tournament competitor. In between bouts, he took a seat among the spectators and waiting fencers in the bleachers to see how Victoria was faring.

He wasn't as vocal in his support as some of the others sitting on those hardwood planks, but his eyes followed the ebb and flow of Victoria's bouts like a tennis judge watching the bounce of the ball. And he was silently happy he didn't have to fence against his own child.

Licata rode a wave of good point control and speedy footwork to eliminate Megan Morris in the second round. But it was during that bout that the wheels fell off.

With a comfortable lead and closing in on a victory, Licata retreated and hit the floor clutching his left leg. He shook his head and said he heard a pop and "knew" he had torn his calf muscle.

Despite the injury, Licata continued in the tournament

and managed to pull out a 15-11 win over Mark Anthony in the quarterfinals. Obviously hurting, Licata moved slower and kept his lunges much shorter in the bout and in between points, he paused to massage his calf and try to work out some of that nagging, disruptive pain.

In the semifinals, Licata showed more than just determination and drive, he demonstrated his deep-seeded sense of sportsmanship. When his opponent, Robert Smith, lost both of his foils to malfunctions and was preparing to forfeit the bout, Licata gave him his backup weapon. "I don't want to win that way," he told Smith. And so, the bout continued until Licata limped off the strip with an 11-9 win.

In the finals, Licata, tired and worn out from fencing on his broken wheel, pushed and fought as hard as he could, but the 17-year-old McIver proved to be one point better. McIver earned a D rating, while Licata got an E.

He may have been second place in the tournament, but Licata is first rate.

e-mail: mkrueger@beenews.com