Rifle Begins 2025 NCAA Championships in Historic Memorial Coliseum Friday
LEXINGTON, Ky. – For the 31st time in program history the University of Kentucky rifle team will compete in the NCAA Rifle National Championships this weekend inside Historic Memorial Coliseum in Lexington, Kentucky.
The two-day event will see the best air rifle and smallbore competitors in the nation compete on the Historic Memorial Coliseum floor. Smallbore competition will being Friday at 9 a.m. ET, followed by air rifle competition Saturday that will also begin at 9 a.m. ET. An individual final will be held each day and all awards will be handed out Saturday at the conclusion of the event. A detailed schedule of events is below.
Both all-session tickets and single-session tickets are now on sale for Big Blue Nation to watch the championships inside the newly reimaged Historic Memorial Coliseum. All-session and single-session tickets are on sale through the UK Athletics Account Manager. All-session tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for youth (ages 3-18) and seniors (age 65+). Single-session tickets are $15 for adults and $12 for youth (ages 3-18) and seniors (age 65+). Children ages 2 and under will be admitted free of charge. Fans should purchase tickets for the event in advance through UK Athletics Account Manager through Ticketmaster or may call the UK Athletics Ticket Office during regular business hours. Tickets will also be available for purchase in person at the UK Athletics Ticket Office inside the Joe Craft Center.
Accessible seating will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. For safety reasons, only the Lexington Avenue entrance will be available for fans to enter Historic Memorial Coliseum. The Avenue of Champions and Rose Street entrances will be closed for this event. Parking options surrounding the venue are available. Complete match information, including parking maps and additional ticket information is available at ukathletics.com/ncaarifle.
Kentucky is one of the most decorated programs in NCAA rifle history, with four national titles – 2011, 2018, 2021 and 2022 – six runner-up finishes and 23 top-five finishes. The 2025 championships will technically mark the second time UK has hosted the national event. The first was in 2020 when UK turned Memorial Coliseum into a first-class range before the NCAA canceled the championships after Thursday’s practice day due to the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic. That season, Kentucky was ranked No. 1 in the nation and was having an undefeated season.
“I am proud of the team for handling their business this season and making sure we were in a good position to qualify for the national championships,” UK head coach Harry Mullins said. “This will be an exciting two days in Historic Memorial Coliseum and I hope Big Blue Nation comes out and supports us. The athletes have worked really hard and I am looking forward to competing together.”
UK qualified for the event thanks to an impressive score in its NCAA qualifier, which was the last factor determining the field for the 2025 NCAA Rifle Championships. Each team’s three score aggregate average – the score based on each team’s highest three regular season scores fired at three different locations – was added to the qualifying score and the teams with the eight highest combined scores qualified for the NCAA Championships.
UK’s three scores it counted as part of its NCAA qualifying score was its 4748 in Colorado, an impressive 4742 fired to start the 2025 schedule in Lexington and its 4740 at Ole Miss in the fall of 2024. The Wildcats total qualifying score was 9483.33, placing UK third overall entering the championships. Alaska is seeded first with a 9509 score, followed by West Virginia second at 9496. TCU, Ole Miss, Murray State, Georgia Southern and Air Force complete the field. Several other individuals were selected as well from teams that did not make the team championships. Full tournament listings can be found at NCAA.com.
On the season, Kentucky is averaging 2342347.73 in smallbore and 2382.13 in air rifle for a 4729.87 team aggregate average. UK’s season-best team score came Nov. 24 in a tri-match with Air Force and Akron in Colorado Springs, Colorado, earning a 4748. The Wildcats are one of four teams in the nation to post a 2360 or higher team smallbore score, while Kentucky’s 2391 season-best air rifle score is tied for the third highest team score in the nation this season.
Individually, sophomore Braden Peiser is Kentucky’s top aggregate performer with a 591.308 smallbore average and 597.077 air rifle average for an aggregate average of 1188.385. Junior Sofia Ceccarello has the team’s best air rifle average at 597.5 and is second in aggregate average with a 1186.167 including her 588.667 smallbore average. Freshman Liz Probst is having a great rookie season with a 583.429 smallbore average and 594.714 air rifle average for a 1178.143 aggregate average. Fellow freshman Sam Adkins is averaging a 1179.214 aggregate average with a 584.643 smallbore average and 594.571 air rifle average. Junior Martin Voss is averaging a 585.154 in smallbore and 591.615 in air rifle for a 1176.769 aggregate. Senior Allison Buesseler is earning 583 in smallbore and 590.786 in air rifle, while freshman Brandon Evans has a 581.571 smallbore average and 590.769 air rifle average. Junior AJ Hotko earns a 576.25 smallbore average and 590.333 air rifle average, while freshman Hannah Todd is posting 564.778 smallbore average and 584.556 air rifle average. Sophomore Emily Marne is averaging a 539 smallbore average and 568.857 air rifle average.
Kentucky is coming off a second-place finish at the Great America Rifle Conference Championships with Probst earning silver in smallbore and Peiser scoring a perfect 600 in air rifle.
For more information on the Kentucky rifle team, visit UKathletics.com or follow UKRifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Friday, March 14 – Smallbore Competition with Finals
Relay #1
Call to the line: 8:45 a.m.
Prep/Sighters: 9 a.m.
Competition: 9:15 – 10:30 a.m.
Relay #2
Call to the line: 11:30 a.m.
Prep/Sighters: 11:45 a.m.
Competition: Noon – 1:30 p.m.
Individual Finals
Report time – 2 p.m.
Final: 2:30-3:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 15 – Air Rifle Competition with Finals
Relay #1
Call to the line: 8:45 a.m.
Prep/Sighters: 9 a.m.
Competition: 9:15 – 10:30 a.m.
Relay #2
Call to the line: 11:00 a.m.
Prep/Sighters: 11:15 a.m.
Competition: 11:30 – 12:45 p.m.
Individual Finals
Report time – 1:30 p.m.
Final: 2-3 p.m.
Awards
Upon Completion of Finals
