Smallbore Results (PDF)
Team Results (PDF)
AKRON, Ohio - The Alaska Nanooks rifle team finished day one at the NCAA Rifle Championships in first-place with a smallbore discipline score of 2349. With that score, the Nanooks take a three-point lead into day two tomorrow.
The Nanooks had three scores of 588 or better with Rylan Kissell leading the way with a team-high 590. Behind him was Gavin Barnick and Peter Fiori as both shot scores of 588. Rachael Charles rounded-out the scoring for the 'Nooks with a 583 and Kellen McAferty was the final Nanooks shooter in smallbore, posting a score of 582. "Today was a solid effort." Said head coach Will Anti, "The score was less reflective of the work I'd say. The team managed the conditions well and I think really shot authentically in parts. It's not easy to do on this stage and something we'll look to expand upon tomorrow."
Kissell's 590 started with a 96/98/194 in kneeling before he posted a 100/100/200 in prone. After his 200, he continued his sharpshooting with a 100/96 in standing to fire his team-leading 590. "Rylan shot a strong match and pounded some standing to lead the group. He knows this stage well and knows how to perform." Added Anti. Barnick started with his smallbore outing really strong with a 99/100/199 in both kneeling and prone. To finish his round he fired a 97/93/190 and Anti added how Barnick's preparation kept him dialed in even through a small hiccup in standing, "Gavin was dialed in during slings but had a small hiccup in standing. His preparation leading into this has been so strong that there was little doubt that he would perform. I would say his preparation for air is even more solid which is exciting." Fiori finished the day with a 588 as well. He shot a 98/99/197 in kneeling before posting a 100/99/199 in prone heading into standing. Fiori ended his round with a 97/95/192 standing score but just missed out on the final.
Rachael Charles and Kellen McAferty rounded out the five shooters for Alaska. Charles posted the final counting score of 583 with a 96/96/192 in kneeling, a 98/97/195 in prone and a 98/98/196 in standings. "Rachael also showed incredible poise in standing after a rocky start - she'll ride that into air." Finally, McAferty shot a 582 with a 96/99/196 in kneeling followed by a 99/98/197 in prone and ending on a 95/95/190 in standing. Anti was happy with how both Fiori and McAferty closed out their days in smallbore, "Kellen and Peter closed the day well. I know they wanted a little more but they had a lot of good going on. Everyone left with some clear take aways for tomorrows performance and that's all you can ask for in this scenario. We'll need a determined, joyful, and authentic performance tomorrow - I have no doubt they've prepared for that…I was proud of the effort in kneeling and we had a few nice comebacks in standing. Everyone had a moment where it could've slipped out from under them and a moment where they righted the ship."
Smallbore Results
- Alaska - 2349
- Ole Miss - 2346
- West Virginia - 2343
- Nebraska - 2340
- Kentucky - 2340
- TCU - 2338
- Air Force - 2322
- Murray State - 2322
Both Gavin Barnick and Rylan Kissell made the 2023 NCAA Smallbore Individual Finals with their scores. Peter Fiori just missed the cut with his 588 36x. Barnick took eighth-place in the final with a finals score of 296.7. Kissell managed to take sixth in the final with a finals score of 346.4.
Tomorrow, the teams will shoot air rifle to conclude the 2023 NCAA Rifle Championships. Links for both video and live targets are available on the Alaska Nanooks athletics website or NCAA.com.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks rifle team, follow @NanooksRifle on Instagram or Twitter, or like the Alaska Nanooks Rifle team page on Facebook.
