COLUMBUS, Ohio – In their first road weekend double header of the season, and their last competitive action until next semester, the Eagle rifle squad returned to Morehead with many accomplishments to be proud of.
Starting out against the University of Akron on Saturday, the Eagles shot extremely well across the board, helping them to a 4573-4564 win over the Zips. Fielding both a Gold team and a Blue team, the Eagles placed three shooters in the top 5 of the smallbore category, and two in the top 5 in the air rifle category.
Leading the way in the smallbore category was senior Elizabeth Lyon, who continued her assault on targets with a score of 578, making her the Eagles' top individual smallbore shooter for the second consecutive week. Shawn Holley and Rob Gagliani also had impressive smallbore performances versus Akron, shooting scores of 570, and 569 respectively.
In the air rifle portion, Lyon and Holley also led the way shooting for MSU’s Gold squad. Lyon fired a 581, while Holley was right behind with his 578. The MSU Blue team shot an aggregate of 4381, and were led by junior Nicole Heitmeyer’s 552 smallbore score, and true freshman Hannah Wagner’s 570 air rifle score.
On Sunday, the Eagles headed to Lt. Hugh W. Wylie Range on the campus of The Ohio State University to face the Buckeyes for the second time this season. The Eagles surprised everyone by out-shooting the Buckeyes in the smallbore category 2278-2269, giving them the upper-hand going into air rifle.
But they fell just 31 points short, and were defeated 4599-4577 when all was said and done. Lyon (577) and Gagliani (575) led the winning effort in the smallbore portion, while Holley (581) and Lyon (579) shot the best in air rifle. Other notable scores against Ohio State included Mary Saenger (smallbore 557; air rifle 568), Justin Egan (smallbore 556; air rifle 556), and Kathleen Mulligan (smallbore 546; air rifle 546).
The Morehead State rifle team will be back in action Jan. 29, when they open up the winter schedule against Virginia Military Institute. This will be their final regular season match of the season before the OVC Championship. The Eagles’ record in shoulder-to-shoulder events sits at 3-5.
