Saturday, February 27
Morgantown, W. Va.
9:00 A.M.
West Virginia University
vs
GARC Championships
Photo by: Ben Powell
WVU Aims for GARC Title
February 26, 2021 12:47 PM | Rifle
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 4-ranked West Virginia University rifle team competes in the 2021 Great America Rifle Conference (GARC) Championships, Feb. 27-28, in a virtual match, in Morgantown, West Virginia.
The first smallbore relay will begin at 9 a.m. ET Saturday and the first air rifle relay will begin at 9 a.m. ET Sunday.
"This match is not going to have the same excitement as a typical conference championship because each team is competing virtually at home," coach Jon Hammond said. "However, this still gives the athletes an opportunity to compete for a championship. This is a positive because many teams may not get that chance."
WVU (7-1, 5-1 GARC) enters the weekend having claimed 10 championship titles. Last season, the Mountaineers finished second with an aggregate total of 4693, shot at the University of Memphis' Larry O. Finch Center, in Memphis, Tennessee. The University of Kentucky took the 2020 GARC Championship title with an aggregate score of 4711.
WVU owns a conference-best 13 GARC Championships titles.
The Mountaineers head into the championships after shooting an impressive 4713 in an NCAA Qualifying Match on Feb. 20. WVU's NCAA qualifying score was the last factor determining the field for the 2021 NCAA Rifle Championships, from March 12-13, at the Lt. Hugh W. Wylie Range, in Columbus, Ohio. The qualification is the 14th straight for the Mountaineers.
Prior to the NCAA Qualifier, West Virginia dropped its only match of the season, 4723-4717, to No. 2 Kentucky, on Feb. 13. The Mountaineers earned a co-champion GARC regular-season title alongside Kentucky and Ole Miss.
The Mountaineers are averaging an aggregate score of 4720.00 with smallbore and air rifle season averages of 2344.1 and 2376.7, respectively. WVU ranks No. 2 nationally in smallbore and No. 1 in air rifle.
Individually, junior Jared Eddy ranks No. 5 nationally, with a 587.57 smallbore season average.
In air rifle, sophomore Akihito Shimizu ranks No. 3 nationally, with a 597.75 season average.
Kentucky's Mary Tucker ranks No. 1 in the nation with a smallbore average of 592.3 and TCU's Stephanie Grundsøe ranks No. 1 in the nation with an air rifle average of 598.
"This match will be really good preparation for the NCAA Championships," Hammond said. "We'll try to use this weekend to learn and refine as many things as we can. Ultimately, it's a great chance for the team to compete and for some to finish their season on a positive note"
Last season, the Mountaineers finished second at the GARC Championships with an aggregate score of 4693. WVU shot a 2323 smallbore mark and a 2370 in air rifle.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVURifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
The first smallbore relay will begin at 9 a.m. ET Saturday and the first air rifle relay will begin at 9 a.m. ET Sunday.
"This match is not going to have the same excitement as a typical conference championship because each team is competing virtually at home," coach Jon Hammond said. "However, this still gives the athletes an opportunity to compete for a championship. This is a positive because many teams may not get that chance."
WVU (7-1, 5-1 GARC) enters the weekend having claimed 10 championship titles. Last season, the Mountaineers finished second with an aggregate total of 4693, shot at the University of Memphis' Larry O. Finch Center, in Memphis, Tennessee. The University of Kentucky took the 2020 GARC Championship title with an aggregate score of 4711.
WVU owns a conference-best 13 GARC Championships titles.
The Mountaineers head into the championships after shooting an impressive 4713 in an NCAA Qualifying Match on Feb. 20. WVU's NCAA qualifying score was the last factor determining the field for the 2021 NCAA Rifle Championships, from March 12-13, at the Lt. Hugh W. Wylie Range, in Columbus, Ohio. The qualification is the 14th straight for the Mountaineers.
Prior to the NCAA Qualifier, West Virginia dropped its only match of the season, 4723-4717, to No. 2 Kentucky, on Feb. 13. The Mountaineers earned a co-champion GARC regular-season title alongside Kentucky and Ole Miss.
The Mountaineers are averaging an aggregate score of 4720.00 with smallbore and air rifle season averages of 2344.1 and 2376.7, respectively. WVU ranks No. 2 nationally in smallbore and No. 1 in air rifle.
Individually, junior Jared Eddy ranks No. 5 nationally, with a 587.57 smallbore season average.
In air rifle, sophomore Akihito Shimizu ranks No. 3 nationally, with a 597.75 season average.
Kentucky's Mary Tucker ranks No. 1 in the nation with a smallbore average of 592.3 and TCU's Stephanie Grundsøe ranks No. 1 in the nation with an air rifle average of 598.
"This match will be really good preparation for the NCAA Championships," Hammond said. "We'll try to use this weekend to learn and refine as many things as we can. Ultimately, it's a great chance for the team to compete and for some to finish their season on a positive note"
Last season, the Mountaineers finished second at the GARC Championships with an aggregate score of 4693. WVU shot a 2323 smallbore mark and a 2370 in air rifle.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVURifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
A Conversation with Wren Baker
Monday, December 05
Jon Hammond | Thursday
Thursday, September 30
Life as a Mountaineer - Jared Eddy
Wednesday, March 24
Jon Hammond | Thursday
Thursday, January 14
