Temple University Athletics
Women's Fencing
Franke, Dr. Nikki
Dr. Nikki Franke
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
- nfranke@temple.edu
- Phone:
- 215-204-7448
After 50 years at the helm of Temple's fencing program, Dr. Nikki Franke retired in August 2022.
In its historic 50th season, Temple went 24-14 to give Franke a career record of 898-277-1. The Owls once again won the NIWFA Title, the team's 26th straight victory. Temple also swept the squad weapons titles and took home two individual titles (sabre and foil). The Cherry and White concluded the season with a No. 10 ranking, and qualified two fencers for the NCAA Championships to finish 16th among 24 women's teams.
Freshman foilist Anna Novoseltseva was named the USFCA Newcomer of the Year after winning the NIWFA Individual Foil Title and advancing to the NCAA Championships following a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Regionals. Franke was named a Women's Team Collegiate Coach of the Year Finalist after the team's successful season on the strip.
In 2020-21, she led the Owls during a challenging season thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Competing in just four regular-season meets in the shortened season, Temple went 11-4 and saw the maximum number of six fencers qualify for the NCAA Championships for the first time in program history. With five fencers going on to compete at the NCAAs, the Owls finished seventh among 17 women's teams. Franke's career record now sits at 874-263-1.
Epeeist Margherita Calderaro finished in sixth place while saberist Eva Hinds tied for seventh place, with both earning Second Team All-American honors, marking the first time in program history that the Owls have earned two top-8 finishes. Calderaro also set the program record for the highest individual finish in epee at the NCAA Championships.
Hall of Fame coach Franke led the Owls to its highest ranking in program history during the 2019-20 season, with Temple coming in at No. 5 in the College Fencing 360 rankings. The team saw a 31-9 season in dual play, putting Franke's career record at 863-259-1. Temple earned several top-10 wins over the season, including an 18-9 victory over then-No. 1 Notre Dame.
The Owls had an impressive showing in post-season play, beginning at the NIWFA Championships. Temple swept all seven titles, taking the team title, sweeping the individual titles for the first time since 2014, and sweeping the weapons titles for the first time since 2015. Senior Kennedy Lovelace earned her second-career foil title, while freshmen Margherita Calderaro (epee) and Zoe Turner (sabre) completed the sweep. At NCAA Regionals, five Owls qualified for the NCAA Championships for the first time since 2009. The NCAA Championships were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Franke reached another significant milestone in the 2017-18 season, getting her 800th victory at Temple on February 4 at the Northwestern Duals. In 46 years as the Director of Fencing and women's foil coach, her career record now stands at 807-242-1. Franke, Temple's women's fencing coach since the program began in the 1972-73 season, has now led the Temple fencers to 46 postseason appearances, including 22 straight NIWFA Championship titles.  Â
The Owls finished 26-12 overall in 2017-18 and sent three fencers to the NCAA Championships, with foil sophomore Kennedy Lovelace placing seventh to earn All-America Second Team honors. The Owls won their 22nd straight team title at the NIWFA Championships, and finished the season ranked 10th in the CF360 Poll.Â
Temple had a record-setting season in 2016-17, amassing a program-best 34 wins while recording just nine losses. In early March of that season, the Owls were ranked sixth in the CollegeFencing360 Coaches Poll, marking the highest-ever ranking in the history of the program. Franke took two representatives to the NCAA Championships, including junior Safa Ibrahim who came home with All-America honorable mention honors after placing ninth overall. The Owls won a program-record 11 matches at the Northwestern Duals on Feb. 4-5, finishing at 11-1 overall and beating both No. 4 Ohio State and No. 9 Northwestern. Later in the season, Temple defeated top-ranked and previously undefeated Princeton University at its own Temple Invitational on Feb. 26, while also upsetting fourth-ranked Penn and finishing 4-1 overall.
The Owls went 24-14 in dual meets during the 2015-16 season, and had four representatives at the NCAA Championships including three first-time participants. They were ranked in the Top 10 in every poll throughout the season, finishing ninth in the final poll of the year. In the previous season, Temple went 24-11 overall and gave Franke win number 700 in early December at Sacred Heart. Two Temple fencers represented the program at the 2015 NCAA Championships, after a record number nine Temple fencers were finalists at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic/South Regional. Â
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In 2013-14, Temple finished with a record of 28-8 overall and placed eighth among women's teams at the 2014 NCAA Championships. Franke had an All-American honoree that season in Tiki Kastor, who placed seventh in sabre.
Franke led her squad to a 22-8 overall record and No. 10 national ranking in 2012-13, and mentored four NCAA Championship qualifiers. In 2011-12, Temple produced a sabre second team NCAA All-American in Kamali Thompson, who has gone on to much success in her post-collegiate career.
With a 24-7 record in 2010-11, the Owls were ranked seventh in the nation for the second consecutive year, before taking ninth place at the NCAA tournament among the women's teams. During the 2009-10 season, Franke collected career win number 600, adding to her Temple coaching legacy which included getting win number 500 in the 2005-06 season.   Â
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On October 21, 2002, Franke was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame, which was established by the Women's Sports Foundation. She was one of only three women to be inducted that year and was chosen based on her impressive coaching, playing, teaching and community service records. In 1995, Franke was honored when she was inducted into the Temple University Athletics Hall of Fame. She was also inducted into the United States Fencing Association Hall of Fame in 1998.
Testimony to Franke's coaching ability was displayed in the 1991-92 season as she guided the Owls to the NCAA Women's Foil Championship. In the 1993-94 season, the Owls' fencing team tied the school record with a .955 winning percentage (21-1) and finished third at the Mid-Atlantic/South NCAA Regionals and sixth at the NCAA Championships.
Franke received the United States Fencing Coaches Association Women's Fencing Coach of the Year honors in 1983, 1987, 1988, and in 1991, when she led the Owls to a third-place finish at the 1991 NCAA Championships with just one senior, three juniors, a sophomore and four freshmen. The Owls have been a force to be reckoned with at the NCAA Championships since the team first qualified in 1976. The Owls won the Foil Team championship in 1992; finished as runner-up in 1987 and 1993; took third place in 1985 and 1991, and took fourth place in 1983, 1984, 1988 and 1990.
A world-class athlete herself, Franke possesses a vast array of national and international accomplishments. She was a member of the 1976 and 1980 U.S. Olympic teams and was the United States Fencing Association's (USFA) National Foil Champion in both 1975 and 1980.
She was the runner-up in the national finals in 1978 and finished third in 1976, 1977, and 1979. Franke was a member of the U.S. Team which placed fifth in the 1973 World University Games in Moscow, as well as the American squad that competed in the World University Games in Bulgaria in 1977.
Franke's international experience continued when she was a member of two U.S. delegations that competed in the 1975 and 1979 Pan American Games. She captured a silver medal in the 1975 individual foil competition and a bronze in the 1979 competition. On both occasions, she helped the United States team to a third-place finish.
A New York City native, Franke graduated with honors from Brooklyn College in 1972. At BC, she was a four-year letter winner, placing third individually at the 1972 NIWFA National Championships and was named an NIWFA All-American. Her collegiate efforts were rewarded when she was inducted into the Brooklyn College Hall of Fame in 1979.
Franke, who recently retired as an Associate Professor in Temple University’s Department of Public Health, received a master's degree in Health Education from Temple in 1975 and completed the doctoral program in 1988.
In its historic 50th season, Temple went 24-14 to give Franke a career record of 898-277-1. The Owls once again won the NIWFA Title, the team's 26th straight victory. Temple also swept the squad weapons titles and took home two individual titles (sabre and foil). The Cherry and White concluded the season with a No. 10 ranking, and qualified two fencers for the NCAA Championships to finish 16th among 24 women's teams.
Freshman foilist Anna Novoseltseva was named the USFCA Newcomer of the Year after winning the NIWFA Individual Foil Title and advancing to the NCAA Championships following a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Regionals. Franke was named a Women's Team Collegiate Coach of the Year Finalist after the team's successful season on the strip.
In 2020-21, she led the Owls during a challenging season thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Competing in just four regular-season meets in the shortened season, Temple went 11-4 and saw the maximum number of six fencers qualify for the NCAA Championships for the first time in program history. With five fencers going on to compete at the NCAAs, the Owls finished seventh among 17 women's teams. Franke's career record now sits at 874-263-1.
Epeeist Margherita Calderaro finished in sixth place while saberist Eva Hinds tied for seventh place, with both earning Second Team All-American honors, marking the first time in program history that the Owls have earned two top-8 finishes. Calderaro also set the program record for the highest individual finish in epee at the NCAA Championships.
Hall of Fame coach Franke led the Owls to its highest ranking in program history during the 2019-20 season, with Temple coming in at No. 5 in the College Fencing 360 rankings. The team saw a 31-9 season in dual play, putting Franke's career record at 863-259-1. Temple earned several top-10 wins over the season, including an 18-9 victory over then-No. 1 Notre Dame.
The Owls had an impressive showing in post-season play, beginning at the NIWFA Championships. Temple swept all seven titles, taking the team title, sweeping the individual titles for the first time since 2014, and sweeping the weapons titles for the first time since 2015. Senior Kennedy Lovelace earned her second-career foil title, while freshmen Margherita Calderaro (epee) and Zoe Turner (sabre) completed the sweep. At NCAA Regionals, five Owls qualified for the NCAA Championships for the first time since 2009. The NCAA Championships were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Franke reached another significant milestone in the 2017-18 season, getting her 800th victory at Temple on February 4 at the Northwestern Duals. In 46 years as the Director of Fencing and women's foil coach, her career record now stands at 807-242-1. Franke, Temple's women's fencing coach since the program began in the 1972-73 season, has now led the Temple fencers to 46 postseason appearances, including 22 straight NIWFA Championship titles.  Â
The Owls finished 26-12 overall in 2017-18 and sent three fencers to the NCAA Championships, with foil sophomore Kennedy Lovelace placing seventh to earn All-America Second Team honors. The Owls won their 22nd straight team title at the NIWFA Championships, and finished the season ranked 10th in the CF360 Poll.Â
Temple had a record-setting season in 2016-17, amassing a program-best 34 wins while recording just nine losses. In early March of that season, the Owls were ranked sixth in the CollegeFencing360 Coaches Poll, marking the highest-ever ranking in the history of the program. Franke took two representatives to the NCAA Championships, including junior Safa Ibrahim who came home with All-America honorable mention honors after placing ninth overall. The Owls won a program-record 11 matches at the Northwestern Duals on Feb. 4-5, finishing at 11-1 overall and beating both No. 4 Ohio State and No. 9 Northwestern. Later in the season, Temple defeated top-ranked and previously undefeated Princeton University at its own Temple Invitational on Feb. 26, while also upsetting fourth-ranked Penn and finishing 4-1 overall.
The Owls went 24-14 in dual meets during the 2015-16 season, and had four representatives at the NCAA Championships including three first-time participants. They were ranked in the Top 10 in every poll throughout the season, finishing ninth in the final poll of the year. In the previous season, Temple went 24-11 overall and gave Franke win number 700 in early December at Sacred Heart. Two Temple fencers represented the program at the 2015 NCAA Championships, after a record number nine Temple fencers were finalists at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic/South Regional. Â
    Â
In 2013-14, Temple finished with a record of 28-8 overall and placed eighth among women's teams at the 2014 NCAA Championships. Franke had an All-American honoree that season in Tiki Kastor, who placed seventh in sabre.
Franke led her squad to a 22-8 overall record and No. 10 national ranking in 2012-13, and mentored four NCAA Championship qualifiers. In 2011-12, Temple produced a sabre second team NCAA All-American in Kamali Thompson, who has gone on to much success in her post-collegiate career.
With a 24-7 record in 2010-11, the Owls were ranked seventh in the nation for the second consecutive year, before taking ninth place at the NCAA tournament among the women's teams. During the 2009-10 season, Franke collected career win number 600, adding to her Temple coaching legacy which included getting win number 500 in the 2005-06 season.   Â
 Â
On October 21, 2002, Franke was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame, which was established by the Women's Sports Foundation. She was one of only three women to be inducted that year and was chosen based on her impressive coaching, playing, teaching and community service records. In 1995, Franke was honored when she was inducted into the Temple University Athletics Hall of Fame. She was also inducted into the United States Fencing Association Hall of Fame in 1998.
Testimony to Franke's coaching ability was displayed in the 1991-92 season as she guided the Owls to the NCAA Women's Foil Championship. In the 1993-94 season, the Owls' fencing team tied the school record with a .955 winning percentage (21-1) and finished third at the Mid-Atlantic/South NCAA Regionals and sixth at the NCAA Championships.
Franke received the United States Fencing Coaches Association Women's Fencing Coach of the Year honors in 1983, 1987, 1988, and in 1991, when she led the Owls to a third-place finish at the 1991 NCAA Championships with just one senior, three juniors, a sophomore and four freshmen. The Owls have been a force to be reckoned with at the NCAA Championships since the team first qualified in 1976. The Owls won the Foil Team championship in 1992; finished as runner-up in 1987 and 1993; took third place in 1985 and 1991, and took fourth place in 1983, 1984, 1988 and 1990.
A world-class athlete herself, Franke possesses a vast array of national and international accomplishments. She was a member of the 1976 and 1980 U.S. Olympic teams and was the United States Fencing Association's (USFA) National Foil Champion in both 1975 and 1980.
She was the runner-up in the national finals in 1978 and finished third in 1976, 1977, and 1979. Franke was a member of the U.S. Team which placed fifth in the 1973 World University Games in Moscow, as well as the American squad that competed in the World University Games in Bulgaria in 1977.
Franke's international experience continued when she was a member of two U.S. delegations that competed in the 1975 and 1979 Pan American Games. She captured a silver medal in the 1975 individual foil competition and a bronze in the 1979 competition. On both occasions, she helped the United States team to a third-place finish.
A New York City native, Franke graduated with honors from Brooklyn College in 1972. At BC, she was a four-year letter winner, placing third individually at the 1972 NIWFA National Championships and was named an NIWFA All-American. Her collegiate efforts were rewarded when she was inducted into the Brooklyn College Hall of Fame in 1979.
Franke, who recently retired as an Associate Professor in Temple University’s Department of Public Health, received a master's degree in Health Education from Temple in 1975 and completed the doctoral program in 1988.
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