Nov. 3, 2012
UK – Citadel, NC State Results
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of Kentucky rifle team knocked off No. 15 North Carolina State and The Citadel in a triangular match Saturday in Charleston, S.C. The Wildcats posted an aggregate score of 4686, compared to NC State’s 4604 and The Citadel’s 4490.
“Overall, I thought it went well,” UK head coach Harry Mullins said. “We shot air rifle first and that was a little different than we are used to.”
The Wildcats opened the morning with a 2353 in air rifle, led by 590s from senior Henri Junghänel and freshman Connor Davis. Senior Heather Greathouse contributed with a 588 and junior Emily Holsopple posted a 585.
“Our air rifle numbers were normal,” Mullins said. “We had good training sessions this week so we were hoping for a little higher but the numbers were solid. We learned something from today about translating practice into competition.”
Led by a personal-best 590 from Emily Holsopple, Kentucky shot a 2333 in smallbore. Junghänel continued to excel in smallbore, shooting a 589. Davis shot a 580 in smallbore.
“Emily had a great performance in smallbore,” Mullins said. “She’s been hovering around 588 and 589 and it was nice to see her hard work translate and help her break the 590 barrier. Henri’s numbers were consistent as he had another good showing for us.”
Sophomore Jonathan Pinkel and freshman Luke South both contributed personal-bests in air rifle. Pinkel delivered a 591 while South stepped up with a 590 in his fourth collegiate competition. Senior Katie Fretts and sophomore Elijah Ellis shot a 587 in air rifle.
“We had some breakout performances from Pinkel and Luke South today,” Mullins said. “I was real proud of them, they demonstrated some strong performances. The two of them have been working hard recently and they stayed focused to accomplish their goals.”
After improving to a perfect 5-0, the Wildcats will play host to No. 12 Navy on Nov. 10.
“I think we’re moving in the right direction as we host Navy this weekend,” Mullins said. “We feel like we left a lot out there and I think it’s a good thing to expect more, we’ve set high standards for ourselves. It’s time to get to where we don’t leave points out there. I think it was a good trip, though. We won the match and learned some things. It’s all about learning and getting ready for the times when the scores are most important.”
