Peiser Earns 600, Wildcats Finish Second at GARC Championships

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Sophomore Braden Peiser put together one of the most impressive days in University of Kentucky rifle history Sunday, earning a perfect 600 score in air rifle and then finished fifth in the individual final as UK as a team finished second overall at the 2025 Great America Rifle Conference Championships in Morgantown, West Virginia.

Peiser was flawless – literally – in his air rifle performance, posting his second perfect score of the year with a 600 and 52 centers. The 52 centers was just off his previous NCAA-tying record 600-59x he accomplished earlier this season. He continued that momentum in the eight-person individual air rifle final, finishing fifth with a strong performance. Overall, Peiser posted the fourth-highest aggregate score at the event with a 1186.

“We did some good stuff today and obviously I am very proud of Braden and what he was able to accomplish,” UK head coach Harry Mullins said. “To put up a perfect score like that in a championship setting is incredible. We have a couple weeks now to regroup and recharge and get ready for NCAAs at home.

Kentucky entered Sunday’s competition down four points to host WVU with the Mountaineers expanding their lead in air rifle to clinch the championship. UK posted a 2346 in smallbore Saturday and a 2382 in air rifle Sunday for a 4728 team score. WVU finished with a 4738, while Navy was third at 4705, Akron fourth at 4699, Army fifth at 4686 and Memphis sixth at 4676.

Top-to-bottom, Kentucky got good performances in air rifle Sunday. A large handful of Wildcats posted 594s in the discipline, including freshmen Sam Adkins, Brandon Evans and Liz Probst, senior Ally Buesseler and junior Sofia Ceccarello, Junior Martin Voss scored a 591 with fellow junior AJ Hotko earning a 588. Freshman Hannah Todd posted a 586 while sophomore Emily Marne posted a 563.

On Saturday, Probst stole the show for the Wildcats, winning the individual smallbore silver medal with a strong performance in the eight-person final after being UK’s best performer in the smallbore round. Buesseler and Voss each made the smallbore final.

Earlier this week, Kentucky qualified for its 31 NCAA Rifle National Championships, which are being hosted by the Wildcats inside the newly reimagined Historic Memorial Coliseum on March 14-15. It was last Saturday’s impressive NCA Qualifying score of 4740 that help cement UK’s place in the championships.

Both all-session tickets and single-session tickets are now on sale for Big Blue Nation to watch the championships inside the newly reimaged Historic Memorial Coliseum. The two-day event will see the best air rifle and smallbore competitors in the nation compete on the Historic Memorial Coliseum floor. The smallbore competition will be March 14 followed by air rifle competition on March 15. All-session and single-session tickets are on sale now through the UK Athletics Account Manager. All-session tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for youth (ages 3-18) and seniors (age 65+). Single-session tickets are $15 for adults and $12 for youth (ages 3-18) and seniors (age 65+). Children ages 2 and under will be admitted free of charge. Fans should purchase tickets for the event in advance through UK Athletics Account Manager through Ticketmaster or may call the UK Athletics Ticket Office during regular business hours. Tickets will also be available for purchase in person at the UK Athletics Ticket Office inside the Joe Craft Center.

For more information on the Kentucky rifle team, visit UKathletics.com or follow UKRifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.