Christine Griffith enters her second year as the Head Coach of Haverford College Men's and Women's Fencing during the 2025-2026 season.
Griffith’s first season at Haverford marked an outstanding start to her tenure, overseeing both the men’s and women’s programs as they earned USFCA All-Academic honors. Several Fords achieved notable competitive success under her leadership. On the women’s side, Sophie Gardiner ’25 was named to the United States Fencing Coaches Association (USFCA) Division III All-Mid-Atlantic/South Region Team for women’s foil. The men’s foil squad also excelled, with Andrew Strayer ’26, Michael Pyo ’26, and Dean Myers ’28 each earning Division III All-Mid-Atlantic/South Region recognition. In epee, Eric Chen ’27 was selected to the USFCA Division III All-Mid-Atlantic/South Region Team, in addition to earning a place on the USFCA Division III All-Mid-Atlantic/South Region First Team.
Under Griffith’s guidance, Chen ’27 went on to join junior foilist Pyo ’26 and foilist Myers ’28 in earning Division III All-America recognition from the USFCA. Chen’s 2024–25 campaign was particularly remarkable, establishing him as one of the premier Division III fencers in the nation. The sophomore earned the Men’s Epee Division III Athlete of the Year award and qualified for the 2025 NCAA Fencing Championships—becoming the only Division III competitor in the field and the first Haverford fencer to reach the national tournament in 15 years. He placed 22nd overall and received the prestigious NCAA Elite 90 Award, given to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA at each of the NCAA’s 90 championship sites, highlighting his excellence both academically and athletically.
Chen additionally secured USFCA Division III First Team All-America honors and was named a First Team CSC Academic All-American. He was selected as the PhillySIDA All-Area Performer of the Year and, alongside Griffith, became a finalist for multiple national USFCA end-of-year awards. Chen was recognized as a finalist for both the Men’s Epee Collegiate Athlete of the Year (across all divisions) and the Men’s Epee Division III Athlete of the Year. Griffith, meanwhile, was named a finalist for the USFCA Division III Men’s Coach of the Year award.
Prior to her first season in 2024-2025, Dr. Lynch expressed her excitement about the hire of Griffith, stating, "I am delighted to announce the hiring of Christine Griffith to lead our men's and women's fencing programs. Christine comes with extensive coaching experience and will build our programs through focused recruiting and expert coaching. At the helm, Christine will execute her plan to take Haverford fencing to the next level."
Griffith most recently served as the Assistant Coach for Sabre at the United States Air Force Academy during the 2023-24 season. As a team, the Falcons finished 12th at the NCAA Fencing Championships in Columbus, Ohio tallying 41 total wins. Nine members of the squad were named to the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) All-Academic Fencing team following the season while Women's sabre athlete Mira Vestel was further recognized with a College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District designation.
"I'm very excited to join the Haverford community and for the opportunity to help shape the next chapter of the fencing program," said Griffith at the time of her hiring. "We have an amazing team of student-athletes who are eager to challenge themselves, and my first priority coming in is to foster an environment where we can build upon their strengths and grow together as a team. Additionally, I look forward to building awareness of all that Haverford College and our fencing program have to offer within the fencing community and expanding our recruitment efforts throughout the upcoming season."
Prior to her stint in Colorado Springs, Griffith was named the first-ever full-time fencing coach at Cleveland State University, taking over that role in 2022. During her time in Ohio, Griffith aided in the men's team placing second and the women's team third at the Central Collegiate Conference Championships. At the championship, all three men's weapons teams finished as the runner-up, while the women's epee team placed third overall. The Vikings brought in seven All-Conference awards with four on the men's side and three on the women's.
Before her tenure at Cleveland State, Griffith spent 11 years in coaching roles with the Rochester Fencing Club in Western New York, where she served as the Associate Head Coach of the sabre program and the Head Sabre Coach beginning in 2017. Additionally, she took on the role of Youth Development Coordinator in 2020, a position in which she was responsible for developing the club's youth fencing programs from introductory to advanced levels.
During her time in Rochester, Griffith additionally served as an Adjunct Fencing Instructor at the Rochester Institute of Technology in 2020 and as the head coach of the Canandaigua Academy High School fencing program from 2017 to 2019.
A decorated fencer during her collegiate days, the Roseville, California product competed at the collegiate level for Philadelphia's renowned Temple University program under legendary coach Dr. Nikki Franke. Griffith qualified for the NCAA Championships in 2007 and 2008. In 2008, she was crowned the National Intercollegiate Women's Fencing Association (NIWFA) Women's Saber Champion and named team MVP. She concluded her fencing career with 152 victories and was recognized with the Owl Club Academic Award in 2009.
Griffith holds a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology and Exercise Science from Temple and recently completed the WeCoach NCAA Women Coaches Academy program, which is designed to enhance leadership skills and coaching effectiveness.
