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No. 1 Mountaineers Win at Memphis
October 31, 2015 06:59 PM | Rifle
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 1-ranked West Virginia University rifle team tallied its third straight victory of the season with a 4693-4671 win at No. 9 Memphis, today, inside the Global Training Academy.
The Mountaineers (3-0, 2-0 GARC) swept their Great American Rifle Conference (GARC) opponent in both guns, winning air rifle, 2367-2355, and smallbore, 2326-2316.
“Today wasn’t our best performance, but everyone worked really hard to overcome some challenges, such as a new range and a long travel day Friday,” said Mountaineer coach Jon Hammond. “We may not have put together our highest team total, but I was pleased with the effort I saw. This match will be a great learning opportunity for us.”
Mountaineer senior Michael Bamsey matched his smallbore season-high score of 587 (198 kneeling, 197 prone, 192 standing) and finished first overall. The Cardiff, Wales, native was particularly strong in kneeling, as his 198 mark was one short of the program record.
“Mike has been shooting solid smallbore all year, especially in kneeling and prone, and today he came out with a good standing performance, too,” Hammond said.
Elizabeth Lee paced the Tigers and finished second with a 583 mark. Seniors Meelis Kiisk and Garrett Spurgeon tied for third place with 581s. Three shooters finished with 579 marks and tied for fifth place: WVU senior Patrick Sunderman and freshman Will Anti, and Memphis’ Mackennon Doran. The mark was a season high for both Mountaineers.
A Mountaineer also finished first in air rifle, as freshman Ginny Thrasher shot a season-high 595 (99-98-100-99-99-100) for the second straight match.
“Ginny has been really strong in air. Smallbore was a challenge today, but she showed a lot of character by coming back and shooting a quality air match,” explained Hammond. “A lot of student-athletes wouldn’t have been able to do that.”
Sunderman and Lee tied for second place with 593s, while sophomore Elizabeth Gratz and junior Jean-Pierre Lucas each shot 591 and tied for fourth place. Anti tallied a season-high 589 and finished in sixth place alongside Tiger Leighton Dempster.
Four Mountaineers shot toward the team score in both disciplines: Spurgeon, Thrasher, Kiisk and Gratz. Additionally, Bamsey shot toward the team smallbore mark, and Sunderman added to the squad’s air rifle total.
“While a lot of the shooters had struggles at different points today, they all dug in deep and finished strong,” said Hammond. “No one quit, and I was pleased with their hard work throughout the day.”
With the win, WVU improves to 10-2 all-time against the Tigers.
The Mountaineers continue their conference road trip tomorrow, as they will meet Mississippi at the Patricia C. Lamar National Guard Readiness Center, in Oxford, Mississippi, at 9 a.m. ET.
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