MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 1-ranked West Virginia University rifle team earned the upper hand against No. 3 TCU this afternoon at the WVU Rifle Range, defeating the Horned Frogs, 4727-4717.
 
The five-time reigning NCAA National Champion Mountaineers (5-0, 3-0 GARC) rode a strong smallbore showing to defeat the 2017 NCAA National Runner-Up, outshooting TCU 2345-2335. The squads tied in air rifle, with each shooting 2382.

"I think today was a great match for us and a really good test," Mountaineer coach Jon Hammond said. "It was a nice result to come out on top. We expected a tough match – TCU is one of the best teams in the country. They challenged us last year, and we expect the same this year. Today will help us as we prepare for next semester.
 
"Our smallbore was nice and strong in the beginning. We saw some of the best performances from Ginny (Thrasher) and David (Koenders). We had a good day in air rifle, too. Everyone was solid today."
 
With the win, WVU improves to 5-2 all-time against the Horned Frogs.
 
Junior Ginny Thrasher swept the individual victories for the second straight match, shooting a career-high matching 599 (100-100-100-100-100-99) air rifle and 593 (195 kneeling, 199 prone, 199 standing) smallbore. The Springfield, Virginia, native's 199 standing mark matches the school record she set on Oct. 2, 2016.
 
Redshirt-freshman David Koenders matched his career-best smallbore score with a second place, 588 mark. Senior Elizabeth Gratz and sophomore Morgan Phillips tied for fifth place with 582s. Additionally, Gratz equaled the program's prone record of 200.
 
Freshman Sarah Osborn shot a career-high 581 and tied for seventh place. Sophomore Milica Babic shot 578 and placed 10th overall.
 
Redshirt-freshman Noah Barker shot 575 smallbore today, and junior Will Anti followed with a 573 mark. Of note, sophomore Jack Anderson tallied a season-high 560.
 
Rachel Garner paced the Horned Frogs and finished third overall with a 587 mark.
 
Babic and Koenders tied for fifth place in air rifle with 595 marks. Gratz finished eighth with a 593 total, while Phillips and Osborn each shot 592 and tied for ninth place.
 
Anderson added a season-high score of 584, while Anti shot 582 and Barker shot 580.
 
Liz March and Mindy Miles paced TCU with second place, 598 showings.
 
Five Mountaineers counted toward the team scores today: Babic, Gratz, Koenders, Phillips and Thrasher.
 
WVU returns to competition tomorrow and plays host to Army West Point at 8 a.m. at the WVU Rifle Range.