Saturday, February 15
Morgantown, W.Va.
10:00 a.m
West Virginia University
vs
Kentucky
Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks
Undefeated Teams Battle for GARC Regular-Season Title
February 14, 2020 04:16 PM | Rifle
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The Great America Rifle Conference (GARC) regular-season trophy for the 2019-2020 season will be awarded on Saturday, as the No. 3-ranked West Virginia University rifle team takes on No. 1 Kentucky at the Bill McKenzie Rifle Range inside the WVU Shell Building, with action set to begin at 10 a.m. ET.
Admission is free and open to the public.
"We're excited for tomorrow's match," Mountaineer coach Jon Hammond said. "Kentucky is the No. 1 ranked team in the nation, and it's the last match of the regular season against a high-quality opponent. With all that said, in order for us to have our best performance, we have to focus on ourselves. Every individual needs to focus on what they need to do in order to performance their best."
WVU (9-0, 7-0 GARC) is the six-time reigning GARC conference champion and has earned the title 12 times in program history. The final regular-season match of the season, a win also would secure the Mountaineers' fifth consecutive undefeated season.
Kentucky's (15-0, 6-0 GARC) last GARC regular-season title came in 2013, the last of three consecutive championships.
WVU is 20-9 all-time against UK.
"I want us to have a professional, disciplined match," Hammond said. "We can only control the things that we can control, so each individual shooter needs to focus on the things that enable them to have a good match."
In their last outing, the Mountaineers took home a 4710-4652 win from No. 13 Ohio State on Feb. 1, in Columbus, Ohio. WVU swept the Buckeyes, winning smallbore, 2334-2297, and air rifle, 2376-2355. Senior Milica Babic and junior Sarah Osborn each shot 586 and tied for first place overall in smallbore. In air rifle, sophomore Verena Zaisberger and junior David Koenders tied for the discipline win with matching 597 marks.
WVU continues to rank No. 3 in the College Rifle Coaches Association (CRCA) Rankings. The rankings are based on NCAA Team Selection Rankings, which are comprised of a squad's top-three scores earned at three different venues. The Mountaineers claim an average of 4717.67. Babic paces the team and ranks No. 3 nationally with a 595.444 air rifle average. Senior Morgan Phillips ranks No. 3 nationally with a 585.778 smallbore average.
Kentucky is coming off a 4724-4649 win over No. 6 Memphis on Feb. 1, in Lexington, Kentucky. Freshman Mary Tucker was the top performer, posting a season-high aggregate score of 1193, which is the top score in the NCAA this season. The high mark came after she shot the NCAA's best smallbore score this year at 595 and tied the second-best air rifle score this season at 598.
Kentucky holds a 4723 average in the NCAA Team Selection Rankings.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVURifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Admission is free and open to the public.
"We're excited for tomorrow's match," Mountaineer coach Jon Hammond said. "Kentucky is the No. 1 ranked team in the nation, and it's the last match of the regular season against a high-quality opponent. With all that said, in order for us to have our best performance, we have to focus on ourselves. Every individual needs to focus on what they need to do in order to performance their best."
WVU (9-0, 7-0 GARC) is the six-time reigning GARC conference champion and has earned the title 12 times in program history. The final regular-season match of the season, a win also would secure the Mountaineers' fifth consecutive undefeated season.
Kentucky's (15-0, 6-0 GARC) last GARC regular-season title came in 2013, the last of three consecutive championships.
WVU is 20-9 all-time against UK.
"I want us to have a professional, disciplined match," Hammond said. "We can only control the things that we can control, so each individual shooter needs to focus on the things that enable them to have a good match."
In their last outing, the Mountaineers took home a 4710-4652 win from No. 13 Ohio State on Feb. 1, in Columbus, Ohio. WVU swept the Buckeyes, winning smallbore, 2334-2297, and air rifle, 2376-2355. Senior Milica Babic and junior Sarah Osborn each shot 586 and tied for first place overall in smallbore. In air rifle, sophomore Verena Zaisberger and junior David Koenders tied for the discipline win with matching 597 marks.
WVU continues to rank No. 3 in the College Rifle Coaches Association (CRCA) Rankings. The rankings are based on NCAA Team Selection Rankings, which are comprised of a squad's top-three scores earned at three different venues. The Mountaineers claim an average of 4717.67. Babic paces the team and ranks No. 3 nationally with a 595.444 air rifle average. Senior Morgan Phillips ranks No. 3 nationally with a 585.778 smallbore average.
Kentucky is coming off a 4724-4649 win over No. 6 Memphis on Feb. 1, in Lexington, Kentucky. Freshman Mary Tucker was the top performer, posting a season-high aggregate score of 1193, which is the top score in the NCAA this season. The high mark came after she shot the NCAA's best smallbore score this year at 595 and tied the second-best air rifle score this season at 598.
Kentucky holds a 4723 average in the NCAA Team Selection Rankings.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVURifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
/ Rifle
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/ Rifle
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