No. 3 Rifle on Target in First In-Person Match, Defeats No. 8 NC State

LEXINGTON, Ky. – In its first in-person match of the season, the No. 3 University of Kentucky rifle team showed no rust inside the Barker Hall Rifle Range on Saturday, posting a 4709-4656 win over No. 8 North Carolina State.
 
All nine Wildcats competed in the match and were separated into two relays with Mary Tucker, Will Shaner, Jaden Thompson, Richard Clark and Mason Joachim on the first relay while Hailee Sigmon, Emmie Sellers, Mitchell Nelson and Mason Hamilton completed the second relay.
 
Kentucky (4-0) defeated NC State in both disciplines Saturday, scoring a 2340 in smallbore and a 2369 in air rifle. The Wildcats earned an overall team score of 4709. The Wolfpack posted an overall team score of 4656 after a 2314 in smallbore and 2342 in air rifle.
 
“It was nice to shoot a head-to-head match and I think we saw some really good things today, especially from Will and Mary,” UK head coach Harry Mullins said. “Getting the first head-to-head match under our belt I think gives us some things to work on. It was great seeing the work that we are putting in paying off in spurts. Now we just need to get more consistent form training to matches and during matches keeping ourselves together. It will be great to get on the road next week and see what we can do.”
 
Sophomore Mary Tucker was the top performer at the match, scoring a 592 in smallbore and 599 in air rifle, which was a season high in the discipline and tied a career high. The impressive marks gave Tucker an aggregate score of 1191, which is just two off her career best aggregate of 1193. Junior Will Shaner was right behind Tucker, finishing second overall at the match with an 1188 overall score. Shaner scored a 590 in smallbore and a 598 in air rifle. So far this season, Tucker and Shaner have each scored 590 or better in air rifle in all three of UK’s matches.
 
Junior Richard Clark posted a 579 in both smallbore and air rifle in the match for an aggregate of 1158, while sophomore Jaden Thompson scored a 579 in smallbore and 587 in air rifle for a total of 1166. Fellow sophomore Emmie Sellers posted a 573 in smallbore and 585 in air rifle for a 1158 total, while senior Hailee Sigmon scored a 576 in smallbore and 575 in air rifle for a 1151 aggregate.
 
Also competing for UK on Saturday was Mason Hamilton, who scored a 573 in smallbore and 587 in air rifle, while Mason Joachim and Mitchell Nelson also posted strong scores. Joachim earned a 572 in smallbore and 576 in air rifle, while Nelson scored a 577 in smallbore and 583 in air rifle.
 
Makenzie Sheffield was the frontrunner for the Wolfpack, scoring a 583 in smallbore and 581 in air rifle for a total of 1164, while Addy Burrow was not far behind with a 580 in smallbore and 592 in air rifle for an aggregate of 1172.
 
The Wildcats will be back in action Saturday, Nov. 7 as it hits the road for the first time this season, traveling to Ole Miss for a dual match with the Rebels. Ole Miss has started its season with consecutive wins over UT Martin and Memphis, earning a season-best 4730 team score against the Skyhawks. The Rebels are currently ranked No. 1 in the latest Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association Top 20, which was released last Tuesday.
 
For the latest on the Kentucky rifle team, follow @UKRifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, as well as on the web at UKathletics.com.