MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 4-ranked West Virginia University rifle team owns a comfortable lead at the 2019 Great America Rifle Conference (GARC) Championships, shooting a winning, 2342 smallbore today inside the University of Akron's Stile Athletics Field House in Akron, Ohio.
 
Junior Morgan Phillips also earned hardware on the first day of the championships, winning the individual title with a 461.0 mark. The conference title is the first career win for the two-time reigning NCAA Smallbore Champion.
 
The Salisbury, Maryland, native is the fourth different Mountaineer to win the GARC smallbore title since 2010.
 
"This is a great result for Morgan," Mountaineer coach Jon Hammond said. "She and (senior) Ginny (Thrasher) are such great finals shooters, and Morgan earned the edge today."
 
The Mountaineers' (13-0, 8-0 GARC) team total is their third-best smallbore score of the season and just four-shots short of their season high.
 
"It was definitely a good performance today," Hammond noted. "Ginny and Morgan shot really strong scores that carried them through the final. This was a good day, and there's a lot for everyone to take away from this match. I think we'll have a nice momentum boost for tomorrow, and we'll be excited to shoot air rifle."
 
Nebraska sits in second place with a 2319 mark, while No. 2 Kentucky is third with a 2309 total.
 
No. 10 Ole Miss (2303) and Akron (2300) are fourth and fifth, respectively, while Memphis is sixth with a 2300 total. No. 6 Navy follows in seventh place with a 2298 score. No. 8 Army (2386) and NC State (2281) round out the day-one team standings.
 
Ginny Thrasher, the 2019 GARC Shooter of the Year and Outstanding Senior, finished second in the final with a 460.3 mark. Sophomore David Koenders shot 419.8 and placed fifth.
 
Thrasher entered the final in first place, having shot a season-high 591 in the day's third relay. Phillips shot 588 and ranked second, while Koenders qualified for the final in sixth place with a 584 total.
 
Joining the trio on WVU's counting squad were sophomore Sarah Osborn and junior Milica Babic, who finished in 13th and 43rd place, respectively, with scores of 579 and 570.
 
Freshman Jared Eddy shot 576 and placed 24th, while sophomore Noah Barker finished in 36th place with a 572 total. Senior Will Anti and freshman Verena Zaisberger finished 48th and 49th, respectively, with scores of 569 and 567.
 
The Mountaineers return to the Stile Athletics Field House tomorrow morning for the air rifle competition. The first relay is set to begin at 8 a.m.