Rifle Wins Share of GARC Championship, Defeats No. 4 WVU

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The No. 2 University of Kentucky rifle team put together a strong performance Saturday inside the Barker Hall Rifle Range, defeating No. 4 West Virginia 4723-4717 to grab a share of the Great America Rifle Conference Regular-Season Championship.
 
It is the second straight season that the Wildcats have earned at least a share of the conference regular-season title. This is the first time UK has earned back-to-back titles since winning the regular-season championship three-straight times from 2011 to 2013. UK currently shares the title in 2021 with WVU and Ole Miss, who each have one loss in GARC action.
 
“I am really proud of the way each shooter battled for points today,” said UK head coach Harry Mullins. “It was a great match between two good programs, and you could see that both squads wanted to perform at the highest level today. Watching the growth in some of our athletes in practice and then seeing them break through some obstacles today was nice to see. This was not an easy week with the ice storm changing up our training plan, but our team continued to show their resilience and did a great job adjusting.”
 
Kentucky handed West Virginia its first loss of the season Saturday as the Wildcats grabbed a lead with a strong smallbore performance and sustained a great air-rifle performance from WVU to earn the win. UK scored a 2344 in smallbore, besting the Mountaineers’ 2333 in the discipline. In air rifle, WVU scored a 2384 with the Wildcats posting a 2379 to seal the win. Overall, UK had a team aggregate of 4723 while West Virginia scored a 4717.
 
Sophomore Mary Tucker was the star again for the Wildcats, earning a 593 in smallbore and 598 in air rifle for an aggregate of 1191. The smallbore score was the highest of the match by four points, while she tied for the top spot in air rifle with two WVU shooters. Overall, Tucker ended as the top individual at the event, outscoring the competition by eight points.
 
Junior Will Shaner and sophomore Jaden Thompson each had great performances for the Wildcats. Shaner, who finished with the second-highest aggregate at the match, scored a 586 in smallbore and followed with a 597 in air rifle, while Thompson posted a 586 in smallbore and 595 in air rifle. Thompson’s 586 smallbore score is a new career high for the sophomore, while her 595 in air rifle tied a career-best mark. Both scores are season highs for Thompson.
 
“That is how Jaden Thompson has been training and it was so good to see her translate it to the range today for a match,” Mullins said. “She is going to be a key part of our success and she really had a great day today. Mary and Will continued to perform well, which was good to see also. Overall, it was a good day for Kentucky and looking forward to postseason competition starting next week.”
 
Junior Richard Clark scored a 579 in smallbore and 589 in air rifle for an aggregate of 1168, while Mason Hamilton scored a 575 in smallbore, 571 in air rifle and an aggregate of 1146. Junior Mitchell Nelson was in the smallbore lineup for Kentucky and scored a 575, adding a 585 in air rifle for an aggregate of 1160. Sophomore Emmie Sellers scored a 565 in smallbore and 583 as part of the air rifle lineup for an aggregate of 1148. Senior Mason Joachim scored a 561 in smallbore, 573 in air rifle and an aggregate of 1134.
 
West Virginia was led in the match by Akihito Shimizu, who scored a 584 in smallbore, 598 in air rifle and aggregate of 1182. Calista Smoyer posted a 582 in smallbore, 598 in air rifle and 1180 overall, while Jared Eddy earned a 586 in smallbore, 592 in air rifle and 1178 aggregate.
 
Saturday’s match concluded the regular season for Kentucky, who will host an NCAA Qualifier with Morehead State on Feb. 20 before the Great America Rifle Conference Championships on Feb. 27-28.
 
For more information on the Kentucky rifle team, visit UKathletics.com or follow UKRifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.