No. 4 UK Rifle Gets Third Ranked Win in a Row, Hosts No. 8 Nebraska on Sunday
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The fourth-ranked Kentucky rifle
team picked up another top-25 win on Friday against No. 18 Akron, 4705-4618.
“I was pleased with the work that we put in during the
match,” head coach Harry Mullins said. “We are more focused and starting to
produce good shots. I was really happy for the folks that broke their personal
records. They have been training hard and it is nice to see that pay off during
competition. Our air rifle score was down today and we’re going to have to get
that under control. With time, that will come up to the same level as our
training.”
The Wildcats improved to a new season best in two categories.
They fired their season-high total score by one point, buoyed
by a 2345 in smallbore.
In smallbore, all five of the top individual scorers
in the match were Wildcats.
Heather Kirby set two new personal records with a 596 in
air rifle, one point better than her previous record, and a 585
in smallbore. Those two scores combined to give her an 1181
aggregate and the top individual spot for the match.
Carr finished with a 588 in smallbore, which was
good enough to be her second-best smallbore finish of the season just
behind her finish last week of 590. She followed with a 592 in air rifle and
finished in second place one point from Kirby.
Billy Azzinaro stayed steady in his performance
this week as he finished as the fourth overall individual. The junior scored
583 in smallbore, which is his third-best score in the discipline this
season, then followed with a 586 in air rifle for an 1169 aggregate.
Jason Spaude was another name to add to
Friday’s list that achieved a personal best. Spaude fired a new
career high in smallbore, 581, and tied the second-best air rifle score of
his career, 587. That score is one point shy of his personal best, 588.
Senior Sonya May achieved a new personal best as she led
the way in smallbore with a 589, just one point shy of the team
season high – owned by Hanna Carr – 590. She eventually ended up with an
aggregate of 1167.
Cathryn Papasodora shot her new season-high
score in air rifle with a 591. That is the fourth best mark of
her career. In smallbore, Papasodora finished with a 570 for an 1161
aggregate.
In the second relay, Carmen Fry stepped up for the
Wildcats. The sophomore shot her season best in air rifle, 590, then followed
with a 582 in smallbore for an aggregate of 1172 and third place overall.
Jason Scharbel shot his second-highest air rifle score of
his season, 585. He ended up with an 1164 aggregate, good enough to finish in
the top ten individuals for the day.
Sunday Preview
The Wildcats will host No. 8
Nebraska on Sunday at 8:30 a.m. for their first top-10 match of
the season. The
Cornhuskers tied with Ohio State at 4662 after they defeated Ole
Miss 4659-4654 two weeks prior. Nebraska will compete against Akron on Saturday
in Lexington.
“Coming into our match against Nebraska, we will have to
continue to bring our best performance,” Mullins said. “They are a very tough
team and look to shoot high numbers. We need to stay focused on the things that
have gotten us this far, and see where that takes us.”
As is the case for all of UK’s home matches, live targets
can be found via ukrifle.com/live-stats/ or MEGAlink.
On Sunday, Kentucky will
be shooting in honor of DanceBlue as part of an overall fundraising
effort. Admission is free, but fans will be able to donate
to DanceBlue at the match.
DanceBlue is a University of Kentucky student-run
organization that fundraises year-round and culminates in a 24-hour no sitting,
no sleeping dance marathon. All of the money that is raised
through DanceBlue is donated to the Golden Matrix Fund, which then
works to support the kids of the DanceBlueKentucky Children’s Hospital
Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Clinic, as well as support of research at the UK
Markey Cancer Center. Throughout it’s 11 years, the organization has
raised more than $9.8 million dollars and is raising more than $1.6 million in
2016.
May, the rifle representative for the UK Student-Athlete
Advisory Committee, has initiated an effort to get the
team involved because DanceBlue is a growing community
philanthropic event.
“The money raised goes to a cause that has a great need,”
May said. “As citizens of the Lexington community, it is our duty to help out
as best we can. Some of the children and families that receive
assistance from the DanceBlue clinic could become the
athletes and scholars that replace us in future generations at UK. It’s definitely
worth it to be involved to help the fight against cancer.”
For more information about DanceBlue, visit danceblue.org.
