Rifle: WVU Triumphant in Return to Range
January 17, 2010 06:50 PM | General
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 1-ranked West Virginia University rifle team opened the second half of its season with a dominate performance, downing NC State, 4678-4561, this evening at the WVU Rifle Range.
The win, which follows an eight-week break in action, pushes the Mountaineers’ unblemished record to 7-0 and improves their Great American Rifle Conference (GARC) standing to 4-0. The Wolfpack drop to 0-7 overall, 0-5 in conference. Additionally, WVU remains undefeated in its 11-match series with NC State.
WVU’s team score is the second-best program mark and sits behind the Mountaineers’ national record-setting score of 4691, shot in the November win over No. 2-ranked Kentucky. Additionally, WVU won both guns and defeated NC State in smallbore, 2325-2244, and air rifle, 2353-2317; the Mountaineers have yet to drop a discipline match this season.
“We achieved a good overall score today,” says fourth-year coach Jon Hammond. “These scores are about where I would expect the team to be at this point in the season. This is a solid start, but nothing spectacular stands out from today. I think everyone knows what he has to improve on from today before our next match.
“Overall, I would say today marked the start of our final push towards the season-ending championships.”
Junior transfer Nicco Campriani paced all shooters tonight in his first action as a Mountaineer, shooting 593 air rifle and 587 smallbore for a school-record aggregate score of 1180. The six-year Italian National Team member and Florence native was forced to sit out WVU’s fall schedule due to transfer rules.
Classmate Andy Lamson and senior Bryant Wallizer tied for second with a combined score of 1165, while sophomore Michael Kulbacki finished fourth with a score of 1164.
Will Teller finished first for the Wolfpack with a combined score of 1150.
The Mountaineers were unwavering in smallbore this evening and secured the top seven positions. Campriani’s 587 (197 prone, 194 standing, 196 kneeling) was tops among all shooters and ties a program-best score previously achieved by junior Kyle Smith against Morehead State in 2008. Wallizer and junior Brandi Eskew tied for second and shot 580; the mark matches Wallizer’s personal-best score. Lamson shot 578 and finished fourth.
Campriani proved his air gun strength with his winning 593 (100, 99, 99, 98, 98, 99) score. Kulbacki was the next closest shooter and finished second with a score of 588, while Lamson and Teller tied for third with scores of 587.
The defending national champion Mountaineers have not started a season 7-0 since 2003, when they opened at 8-0 before ending the year with an 11-2 mark.
The Mountaineers have a short turnaround before their next match and will play host to No. 3–ranked Alaska-Fairbanks on Thursday, Jan. 21, at 8 a.m. at the WVU Rifle Range.
