Rifle Looks to Make History Again
March 10, 2015 12:21 PM | General
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| The WVU rifle team looks for a nation-best 17th and third consecutive NCAA Championship title this weekend. |
The No. 1-ranked West Virginia University rifle team, coined coach Jon Hammond’s “most talented team ever,” pursues its nation-best 17th and third consecutive national title at the NCAA Championships, March 13-14, at the E.F. Horton Rifle Range and Patty Center in Fairbanks, Alaska.
“The team has come together better than any team I’ve had,” said Hammond. “They have combined all of the attributes of shooting well, and there’s a really good drive about the team. They have a great work ethic and a determination to shoot the best they can.”
Unmatched talent and dedication is what Hammond says has lead to the team ranking No. 1 on the College Rifle Coaches Association (CRCA) Poll each week this season. Their 9418.33 NCAA qualifying average also landed them No. 1 heading into the postseason.
“We’ve had years where we’ve had someone that shot incredibly, and we have had years where we have had a lot of depth,” said Hammond. “I would feel very comfortable taking any of the eight shooters we have to the NCAA Championships. They would feature highly on any other team. It is a great credit to the talent, but also to their attitudes and how they have been getting better and better.”
Going undefeated in conference play for the second season in a row, the Mountaineers won a second straight Great American Rifle Conference (GARC) regular-season title. They clinched the title with a 4677-4633 win over then-No. 5 Kentucky on February 7, in Lexington, Kentucky.
WVU heads to the NCAA Championships on the heels of its sixth consecutive win at the GARC Championships, earned with a 4709 team score, February 28-March 1, at Mississippi’s Patricia C. Lamar Readiness Center in Oxford, Mississippi.
At the conclusion of day one of the GARC Championships, WVU sat in second place in smallbore with a 2323 score and entered the final day tied with Kentucky. The team came back to defeat the Wildcats and seven other conference foes with a nation-best 2386 air rifle score.
“They were able to come back the second day [at GARCS] and shoot some incredible air rifle,” said Hammond. “It’s not a bad thing to lose or tie in a match. It’s more a case of making it a positive thing and learning from it.”
The Mountaineers return to Fairbanks after suffering their first loss in two seasons when they split two matches at No. 2 Alaska-Fairbanks, January 31-February 1. WVU defeated the Nanooks in the first match of the weekend, 4691-4688, and lost the second by just one point, 4706-4705.
“I think we will be a better team because of losing to Alaska,” Hammond said. “We haven’t put a massive focus on it. The whole trip was pretty tough. I think they learned a lot about themselves and how they shot in adverse conditions. Those two events [GARCS and Alaska] may turn out to be two really important things that will help us to be more prepared for the championship this week.”
Coach Hammond and the team returned to Alaska-Fairbanks on Monday and stand to make history again with a 17th NCAA Championship. However, Friday and Saturday’s matches won’t be looked at any differently than the 13 the team has shot this season.
“We’re going to go up there and shoot another match,” said Hammond. “It’s no bigger or smaller. We want to go up there and just enjoy the trip. We want to maintain emotional control, and we don’t want to worry about any things we can’t control.”
Smallbore competition will begin Friday at 1 p.m. ET, and air rifle will begin at 12 p.m. ET on Saturday. All-America awards will be announced late Saturday night.
“We will focus on the two matches and do our best,” said Hammond. “Where that lands us is where it lands us. The eight of them that were shooting regularly this year should end up as All-Americans, so we have that to look forward to as well. This weekend is a fun end to the season.”
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