No. 4 UK Rifle Travels to Alaska for Two Top-15 Matchups
FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The fourth-ranked Kentucky rifle team will round
out the fall portion of this season’s schedule this weekend in Fairbanks,
Alaska, with challenging matches and a chance to move up in the rankings on the
line.
The Wildcats will face No. 12 NC State for their last conference
matchup of 2016 on Friday at 1 p.m. ET, before facing another top-10 opponent
in host-school and tenth-ranked Alaska-Fairbanks on Saturday at 12 p.m. ET.
Both matches will be held at the E.F. Horton Rifle Range. Live targets can be
found here.
“We are always excited to come (to Alaska) and compete,” head coach
Harry Mullins said. “The Horton Rifle Range is a nice facility and the
atmosphere is always good for competition. I am looking forward to seeing how
our group responds to travel along with the cool and competitive atmosphere.”
Kentucky’s most recent trip to The Last Frontier in the 2014-15 season
ended with a loss on the first day to Alaska-Fairbanks, who was then ranked
seventh, but the Wildcats bounced back for a top-five victory against Nebraska
on the final day of the fall schedule.
Kentucky enters the weekend 9-1 this season, and is riding four-match win
streak against ranked teams. Kentucky defeated eighth-ranked Nebraska in its
last outing two weeks ago, 4683-4675, for its first top-10 win of the season.
Heather Kirby set a new personal record in air rifle and matched the team-high
score for the season in the match.
NC State enters Friday’s competition 6-2 overall and 3-1 in conference
action. The Wolfpack won a close battle with Memphis, 4642-4632, while Olympian
Lucas Kozeniesky almost had a perfect score in air rifle after registering a
599 and breaking the program record.
In its last outing, Alaska-Fairbanks took to the road to defeat the
Nevada Wolfpack, 4666-4654. The Nanooks are 3-3 overall this season.
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The most up-to-date coverage of the Kentucky rifle team is available via @UKRifle handles on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and at UKathletics.com.
