 "Photo: Jaime Rodriguez")
Wearing white protective armor and carrying slender metal blades, Kelley and Courtney Hurley prepare to devour their next victims.
They are masters of their sport - epee fencing - the sport of full-body fencing.
For them a practice session includes the sound of metal clashing, intricate footwork, forward attacks and lunges. The long, metal blade, or epee, contains a sensor tip to record each contact. Each beep of the buzzer indicates a hit.
The Hurley sisters are world-champion fencers. The U.S. Fencing Association ranks the Hurleys No. 1 and 2 in the country in overall point standings. Courtney, the younger of the two sisters, actually comes out on top by 2 points.
Kelley, 18, is the 2005 Cadet World Champion and was a silver medalist in the 2003 Epee Pan American Games.
This fall, she will attend Notre Dame on a fencing scholarship and study fashion design.
Courtney, 15, is a junior at Warren High School and hopes to follow her sister to Notre Dame. She won the 2006 Cadet World Championship this year and in October placed first in cadet epee in Budapest, Hungary.
Cadet competition is for people 17 and under.
Both sisters are hoping for a chance in the 2008 Olympics. For them, anything is possible.
"I never expected to get this far," Kelley said. "I was actually thinking about quitting, but I kept working at it and won the championship."
Courtney, who also loves skateboarding and heavy metal rock, has always had high hopes.
"Yes, I expected to get this far," Courtney said. "After seeing my sister reach her goal, I knew that I could do it, too."
Epee fencing is the oldest form of fencing. Unlike sabre and foil fencing, epee is more of a freestyle sport, meaning "anything goes," according to the U.S. Fencing Association.
With contestants attacking from either direction and trying to be the first to score 15 points, epee fencing "becomes a game of careful strategy and patience," according to the association.
It is also a sport that requires dedication, the Hurleys said.
The girls must spend much of their time practicing for future competitions and for their chance in the Olympics.
"I wish I had more time to make friends," Kelley said.
Their mother, Tracy, recognizes the sacrifices made by both her daughters.
"The girls take a couple of weeks off here and there, but for the most part, fencing is a consistent sport," said their mother, who teaches management at Texas A&M-Kingsville System Center-San Antonio.
"They work at fencing for about 10 months out of the year."
The last two months of the school year, the girls missed five weeks for competitions.
They traveled to South Korea; Sacramento, Calif.; Spain; China; and Australia.
Learning about different cultures and meeting new people has been an advantage because "not all teenagers can say that they have the opportunities that we have," Kelley said.
Although missing school for weeks at a time, the girls continued to succeed academically and socially.
Their parents act as tutors while they're on the road.
"They always met high expectations while balancing their fencing expectations," said Warren High School Principal Patricia Hill. "If it wasn't for family goals, I don't think this would've happened."
Hill said the girls are well-known at school and well-respected.
"It has been exciting for us to have them as a part of our school, and for them to still be humble people," she said.
During the school year and summer, the Hurleys maintain a rigorous practice schedule.
The girls practice two to four hours daily. Most fencing workouts are at Alamo Fencing Academy, 961 Isom Road, but they also practice in their backyard.
Their dad thinks the sisters could be practicing more.
"It's not enough," said Robert Hurley, explaining that Chinese fencers practice 10 hours a day.
Both girls attribute much of their success to their parents, who help coach them.
Robert and Tracy Hurley met in the 1980s in Houston when they were fencing. The two were destined to get married.
At the time, Robert was a doctor in the public health field. He's now retired.
With their love of fencing, the two parents coached their daughters in the sport.
But after realizing that they couldn't teach their children everything, the Hurleys decided to ask their friend Paul Pesthy, a five-time national champion and a four-time Olympian, for help.
"Their parents are really dedicated to them," said Pesthy, who retired from teaching kinesiology at San Antonio College. "They sacrifice so much and really support them. It's truly a family effort, and all of them are dedicated."
Pesthy is the U.S. Fencing Association's women's epee coach.
He has been fencing for 30 years and coaches a number of epee fencers.
Neely Harvey, 15, is a student of Pesthy's. She lives in Houston but travels to San Antonio every Friday to practice with Pesthy at the Alamo Fencing Academy.
Harvey has known the Hurley sisters for three years and thinks they are "determined."
"They are an inspiration to me," she said. "When practicing with them, it's very intense, but it makes me stronger. They are the world champs, so it's good to learn their fencing skills."
As for the Hurleys, they have no regrets. Their words of wisdom are "keep breathing, never give up and never lose confidence."
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