Feb. 20, 2013

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Kentucky rifle team has been selected as one of eight teams to compete at the 2013 NCAA Championships March 8-9 in Columbus, Ohio, it was announced Wednesday night by the NCAA.

“It’s always exciting to go to the NCAA Championships,” UK head coach Harry Mullins said. “This is always one of our goals at the beginning of the season, to go, but also to try to make a strong push to bring home hardware.”

Kentucky’s qualifying score was a weighted average, 50 percent coming from the 4697 the Wildcats shot this past weekend at the NCAA Qualifiers and the remaining 50 percent coming from an average of three scores over the course of season, with no two scores coming from the same location. Kentucky’s three scores factored from the season were the 4705 Kentucky shot against Alaska-Fairbanks in Murray, Ky., the 4716 shot at home vs. Army and the 4686 Kentucky shot in Charleston, S.C.

The eight team field consists of Air Force, Alaska-Fairbanks, Jacksonville State, Kentucky, Nebraska, the U.S. Military Academy, Texas Christian and West Virginia.

Ranked No. 3, the Wildcats wrapped up a strong overall season that included a third consecutive Great American Rifle Conference Regular Season Championship. The Wildcats broke numerous program records vs. Army earlier in the year, including total aggregate score (4716), aggregate smallbore (2348), individual aggregate score (Henri Junghänel – 1186) and individual smallbore (Junghänel – 592).

The Wildcats will travel to Oxford, Miss., to compete in the GARC Championships this weekend. With a layout similar to the NCAA Championships, smallbore relays will be on Saturday, followed by air rifle relays on Sunday.

“Getting this news always relieves you and kind of reassures you a bit,” Mullins said. “I’m very excited about the work the team has put in this season and we look forward to hopefully having another couple good weeks.”