FAIRBANKS, Alaska – After over a month off from competition, the No. 4th-ranked Alaska Nanooks coed rifle team returns to the range and hits the road this week, taking on the No. 19 University of Texas at El Paso Miners on Friday, Nov. 17 before facing the No. 7 University of Nevada Wolfpack on Sunday, Nov. 19. Friday's match will be held at the UTEP Rifle Range in El Paso, while Sunday's competition will be held on the University of Nevada campus in Reno.
LAST TIME OUT
The Alaska Nanooks return to competition after taking almost a month off, as they last hosted the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Air Force Falcons Oct. 13-15. The Nooks combined for a team aggregate score of 4694 to win the tri-team match on Friday, Oct. 13 before defeating Ohio State 4678-4669 on Saturday, Oct. 14 and completing the weekend sweep by downing Air Force 4684-4663 on Sunday, Oct. 15.
RANKED NOOKS
As of November 10, the Nanooks currently sit in the No. 4 spot in the Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association Poll with 4694 – the highest the team has been ranked so far this season. Alaska's upcoming weekend competition of UTEP and Nevada also made the top-20, ranking 19th and 7th respectively. Alaska's only other two opponents this season, Ohio State and Air Force, also rank within the top-10, placing 6th and 8th, respectively.
MADDALENA SETS PROGRAM RECORD
In case you missed it, redshirt-senior
Sagen Maddalena made program history on Saturday, Oct. 14 as she registered an individual aggregate score of 1189 to set a new program record. Maddalena's aggregate total was a combination of a 591 in smallbore and a 598 in air rifle.
ALASKA SITS IN FIFTH
In the NCAA Rifle's team averages, Alaska currently ranks fifth in team aggregate total with an average of 4685.33. West Virginia ranks first (4727.65), followed by TCU (4719), Kentucky (4708) and Murray State (4692.57). The Nooks rank fifth in the team smallbore average with 2315.67 and fourth in the team air rifle average with 2369.67.
MADDALENA RANKS THIRD INDIVIDUALLY
Maddalena currently sits in third place in the NCAA rifle's individual average rankings, posting an aggregate average of 1183.66. Kentucky's Henrik Larsen ranks first with an aggregate total of 1190.2, while West Virginia's Ginny Thrasher ranks second with 1184.13. Additionally, Maddalena ranks third in smallbore with an average total of 586.67 and third in air rifle with a 597.
LEWIS RETURNS
Alaska Nanooks Director of Athletics
Dr. Gary Gray announced in August that
Layne Lewis was officially hired on as the Nanooks head coach for the 2017-18 season. Lewis served as the team's interim head coach for the entire 2016-17 season and is also a Nanook rifle alumni.
CAPTAINS ANNOUNCED
Last month, the Alaska Nanooks named Maddalena and junior Nathan Taylor the 2017-18 team's co-captains. It marks the first time Taylor has been selected for the leadership role, while Maddalena reprises her role as co-captain from both the 2016-17 and 2015-16 seasons.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks rifle team, follow @NanooksRifle on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks Rifle team page on Facebook.
