FAIRBANKS – The Alaska Nanooks rifle team is in action this Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 22-23 against the Air Force Academy. Day one will be shot at TVSA and day two will be shot at the E.F. Horton Rifle Range in the Patty Center. 
 
Saturday, Jan. 22 vs. Air Force
Live Stats >> results.megalink.no
TVSA, Fairbanks, Alaska, 9:00 a.m.
 
Sunday, Jan. 23 vs. Air Force
Live Video >> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg14julGsI0
Live Stats >> results.megalink.no
E.F. Horton Range, Patty Center, UAF Campus, 8:00 a.m.
 
Last Time Out
The Alaska Nanooks rifle team made it nine-straight on Sunday, Jan. 16 using a score of 4721 to knock-off #4 Ole Miss. The Rebels shot their second-consecutive 4719 after firing that same score at TVSA a day earlier. 

"We had another exciting match with Ole Miss today. An even narrower margin of victory kept it interesting all the way to the end." said head coach Will Anti, "Overall, we were really pleased with today's match." 

In the individual finishes, Gavin Barnick led the way for the Nanooks, posting an 1183. He used a smallbore outing of 589 and a 594 in air to grab the top-spot. Sara Karasova joined him in the top-three, taking the third-place finish on a score of 1182. Jessica Boyce posted a pair of season-highs for an aggregate of 1178 and a sixth-place finish. Behind her in seventh and eighth were Daniel Enger and Rylan Kissell, both posting an 1178. 

In smallbore, Barnick shot a 589 for the top-spot. Kissell followed closely behind, taking second with a 589 as well. Karasova and Enger were the final Nanooks in the counting shooters as Karasova took fifth with a score of 586 and Enger took seventh with a score of 586. "It was a great improvement over yesterday in a lot of areas. Definitely the overall score doesn't tell the whole story. We had a season high from Jess in both guns which was so nice to see. She's had a long injury and recovery journey so it's nice to see some light at the end of the tunnel for her. Daniel and Rylan performed strong in standing and Sara shot well in kneeling."

In air, the Nanooks were led by Karasova. She posted a 596 in the first relay of shooters. Barnick, Enger and Kissell followed in the squad scorers. Barnick posted a relay one score of 594. Enger was in the second relay on Sunday, and to close the day, fired a 592 for a seventh-place finish in the air standings. Finally, Kissell shot a 589 for an 11th-place finish in the air standings. 

"Again, we had a few hiccups with some odd or unanticipated challenges but they overcame them well." said Anti about his teams overall performance, "All of those moments are great preparation for some the matches in our future. Overall it was a good weekend with some hard fought wins."
 
Quick Hitters

• The Nanooks moved down a spot in the recent CRCA Poll. After spending much of the season at #1, they moved to #2 as Kentucky moved into the newest top-spot following their historic showing last weekend. 
• The Nanooks are fresh off two wins against Ole Miss shooting a 4725 the day before their 4721 and win against Ole Miss. 
• On the season, the Nanooks aggregate average is 4731.3.
• Rylan Kissell is currently holding the second-highest aggregate scoring average in the NCAA with an 1187 average. 
• Sara Karasova has the seventh-highest aggregate average with an 1182.44.
• Gavin Barnick is the final Nanook in the top-10 with an average of 1180.22 while Kellen McAferty is eyeing a jump into the top-10 as he currently sits in 11^th with an 1180.143 average.

Saturday will be a one relay match at TVSA. On Sunday, Jan. 23, the Nanooks and Air Force will shoot two relays. In relay one, the Nanooks will have Sara Karasova, Andrew Pham, Rylan Kissell, Gavin Barnick and Diana Maxey shoot. In relay two, Kellen McAferty, Jessica Boyce, Daniel Enger and Marina Gonzalez Mazo will shoot. 

For more information on the Alaska Nanooks rifle team, follow @NanooksRifle on Twitter or Instagram, or like the Alaska Nanooks Rifle team page on Facebook.