Wildcats Defeat North Georgia to Complete Impressive Doubleheader Home Weekend
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of Kentucky rifle team completed it weekend doubleheader with a victory over North Georgia on Sunday inside the UK Rifle Range.
Kentucky defeated NGU 4693-4668. Kentucky, which approached the doubleheader weekend with a split squad, competed seniors Brandon Evans and AJ Hotko, sophomore Hannah Todd and freshmen Elisa Boozer and Jacob St. Hilaire against North Georgia. The rest of the 11-person team competed Saturday vs. Akron.
UK scored a 2316 in smallbore and 2377 in air rifle for a 4693. North Georgia posted a 2301 in smallbore and 2367 in air rifle for a 4668.
“We saw some good things today and obviously some things that we need to work on and get better, but overall a great weekend of competition,” UK head coach Harry Mullins said. “I thought that Elisa did a really good job in smallbore to fight through some adversity and come out with a good score. Happy for everyone as this is a good chance for some shooters to get experience as countable athletes. We were hoping for a 4700, but this was a good showing and will be great experience for them.”
In smallbore, Boozer led Kentucky with a strong 588 score, posting a 196 in kneeling with a 199 in prone and 195 in standing with 40 total centers. The strong score was a career high for the rookie. Evans posted a 583 overall with 32 centers, earning a 195 in kneeling, 197 in prone and 191 in standing. St. Hilaire scored a 185 in kneeling, 199 in prone and 193 in standing for a 577, while Todd rounded out the scoring with a 189 in kneeling, 195 in prone and 184 in standing for a 568. Hotko scored a 566 with a 188 in kneeling, 193 in prone and 185 in standing.
In air rifle Sunday, Kentucky was paced by Boozer, who also shot a 595 with 48 centers, while Evans also scored a 595 with 48 centers. Boozer takes the top spot based on the tiebreaker, which was score in the last 10-shot series. Todd scored a 594 with 46 centers with St. Hilaire scoring a 593 with 44 centers. Hotko rounded out the scoring with a 583 and 31 centers.
Overall, Boozer was the top finisher for Kentucky with a 1183 aggregate, which was a career-best aggregate as well. Evans was second with a 1178 and St. Hilaire was third at 1170.
The weekend started for Kentucky in impressive fashion as the Wildcats posted a 4762 team score Saturday vs. Akron. The score marked the first time a team has break 4760 team score in NCAA history as the Wildcats set a new NCAA record benchmark.
Kentucky scored a 2367 in smallbore against the Zips, which was UK’s second-highest smallbore team score of the season. The Wildcats secured the top mark with a NCAA-record-tying 2395 air rifle team score.
Individually, sophomore Liz Probst scored a perfect 600 score in air rifle. It marked the first 600 in her career in air rifle. She also scored a 588 in smallbore for a 1188 aggregate.
Junior Braden Peiser led Kentucky in the match against Akron with a 1195 aggregate, while senior Sofia Ceccarello scored a 1193 aggregate. Sophomore Sam Adkins scored a 1186 aggregate, while senior Martin Voss posted a 1178 aggregate. Wrapping up UK’s scoring Saturday was junior Emily Marne with a 1135 aggregate.
Kentucky will be back in action Saturday, Feb. 14 against West Virginia in Morgantown. Live targets and NCAA scorecard from the match will be available online at UKathletics.com.
