No. 3 Rifle Heads to North Georgia Sunday
LEXINGTON, Ky. – After a strong weekend in Murray, Kentucky, where the No. 3 University of Kentucky rifle team posted wins in the Withrow Open and in a dual-match vs. Memphis, the Wildcats return to action Sunday in Dahlonega, Georgia for a dual-match with North Georgia.
Sunday’s dual match will feature one relay with only five Wildcats competing. Smallbore sights and prep will begin at 8 a.m. ET, meaning air rifle sights and prep will get underway around 10:30 a.m. ET. Live targets and NCAA scorecard will be available online at ukathletics.com.
“Busy week ahead for us as we go to North Georgia for a dual match Sunday and then quickly turnaround and go to Alaska next week for a couple matches up there,” UK head coach Harry Mullins said. “This is the time of year where you are looking to see how the team handles the travel and back-to-back matches as you head to postseason competition.”
Kentucky is coming off two wins last weekend in the western part of the Commonwealth, winning the 2025 Withrow Open and a dual-match with Memphis. Both matches were held in the Pat Spurgin Rifle Range in Murray, Kentucky. The Wildcats earned a 4731 in the Withrow Open, which was the top score of the annual event. Murray State hosted the event while Nebraska, Memphis, Jacksonville State, North Georgia and UAB also participated. The following day, UK defeated Memphis in the same range, posting a 4736 while the Tigers scored a 4699.
Sophomore Braden Peiser led Kentucky in both matches, scoring an aggregate of 1189 in the Withrow with a 592 in smallbore and 597 in air rifle. He followed that the next day with a top individual performance against Memphis, scoring a 1188 aggregate with a 589 smallbore and 599 air rifle. Junior Sofia Ceccarello had a good weekend with a 588 smallbore and 595 air rifle in the Withrow Open and a 585 smallbore and 596 air rifle against Memphis, while freshman Liz Probst also performed well. Probst had a 1185 aggregate against Memphis with a 589 smallbore and 596 air rifle, while she posted a 583 smallbore and 597 air rifle in the Withrow Open.
As a team this season, Kentucky is averaging a 4733 team aggregate score with a 2350.30 average in smallbore and 2383.70 average in air rifle. Peiser is the leader for Kentucky averaging a 591.7 in smallbore and 596.3 in air rifle, while Ceccarello is right behind him with a 589.375 in smallbore and 597.7 in air rifle. Probst and fellow freshman Sam Adkins are right behind two in averages. Adkins is earning a 584.667 in smallbore and 595.111 in air rifle, while Probst had a 583.6 smallbore average and 594.8 air rifle average. Junior Martin Voss is earning a 584.667 in smallbore and 591.778 in air rifle, while senior Allison Buesseler is averaging 582 in smallbore and 589.889 in air rifle. Freshman Brandon Evans is having a good season with a 581.111 in smallbore and 588.875 in air rifle, while fellow freshman Hannah Todd is earning a 564 in smallbore and 583.6 in air rifle. Junior AJ Hotko is posting a 577.5 average in smallbore and 590.2 averaging in air rifle, while sophomore Emily Marne rounds out the roster with a 546.75 in smallbore and 571.75 in air rifle.
After the dual-match this weekend, UK will travel west to Fairbanks, Alaska for two matches against UAF on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. UK wraps the regular season on Feb. 8 against WVU in Lexington before hosting its NCAA Qualifier on Feb. 22.
Postseason competition begins March 1-2 with the Great America Rifle Conference Championships in Morgantown, West Virginia. The NCAA Rifle Championships return to Lexington for the first time since 2020. The two-day event will see the best air rifle and smallbore competitors in the nation compete on the Historic Memorial Coliseum floor. The smallbore competition will be March 14 followed by air rifle competition on March 15. Ticket information and full schedule of events for the championships will be announced later.
For more information on the Kentucky rifle team, visit UKathletics.com or follow UKRifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
