MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University rifle team will celebrate the program's 75^th season in 2025-26. Throughout the year, fans can relive the program's most memorable moments with acknowledgments of the team's history on the new 75^th Rifle Season website, wvusports.com/feature/75YearsofRifle.
 
"Seventy-five seasons is a remarkable milestone for any program, and for WVU Rifle, it's a testament to the legacy built by generations of student-athletes, coaches and supporters," said Hayhurst Family Head Coach Jon Hammond. "This anniversary isn't just about looking back it's about honoring the tradition while continuing to push this program forward. I'm incredibly proud of what this team has accomplished and even more excited about where we're headed."
 

The Mountaineers will celebrate 75 years of varsity status, dating back to 1951. Major John Nicholas was the program's first head coach, leading the squad for two seasons.
 
The program would see many ranked officers take over the reins of the program over the next 21 seasons. Captain Charles Means (1961), Master Sergeant Charles Hailey (1964), Master Sergeant Francis Orchard (1966) and Master Sergeant Charles Neal (1976) each collected National Rifle Association Championships during the span.
 
With four National Rifle Association Championships to their name, the Mountaineers officially started competing as an NCAA-sponsored sport in 1980. Ed Etzel, the program's first civilian coach, pioneered WVU's transition into NCAA competition, finishing national runner-up three straight seasons from 1980-82. WVU broke through in 1983, winning the program's first NCAA National Championship with Etzel winning three more during his run as head coach in 1984, 1986 and 1989.
 
Marsha Beasley became WVU's head coach in 1990, winning four straight titles from 1990 to 1993 and again from 1995-98. Her eight NCAA Championships are the most by a coach in program history. She coached two stints for the Mountaineers from 1990-03 and again for two seasons in 2005-06. She finished her time with a 153-23 (.869) overall record.

Jon Hammond, program's all-time winningest coach in program history, took over the program in 2006. His record currently sits at 210-21 (.909).
 
Hammond won his first NCAA Championship in 2009 and then won five straight from 2013-17, before collecting the Mountaineers' 20^th NCAA Championship during the 2025 season.
 
Out of the 45 NCAA National Championships held, WVU has finished runner-up or better in 30 competitions. The program's 20 NCAA titles are the 8^th most for a single program across all sports in NCAA history.
 
Individually, West Virginia has seen 30 individual national champions, led by Petra Zublasing with three titles. She won air rifle in 2012 and added both air rifle and smallbore in 2013. Bruce Meredith claimed the Mountaineers first individual national championship in 1961 in smallbore.
 
WVU has seven two-time champions, including Zublasing, in John Rost, Web Wright, Ann-Marie Pfiffner, Trevor Gatham, Ginny Thrasher and Morgan Phillips.
 
Internationally, West Virginia has had at least one Mountaineer compete in the Olympic Games since 1968. In total, WVU has seen five shooters bring home a combined nine medals from the games.
 
Jack Writer saw the first success at the international event, winning silver in 1968 in Mexico City and then gold in 1972 in Munich. Ed Etzel brought home gold during the 1984 Los Angeles games and then 20 years later Mike Anti added silver during the 2004 games in Athens.
 
Nicco Campriani is the only Mountaineer to ever win two medals in the same games, accomplishing the feat in both the 2012 London games and the 2016 Rio games. He won gold and silver in London before sweeping the podium with two golds in Rio.

For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow @WVURifle on X, Instagram and Facebook.