MOREHEAD, Ky. -- Morehead State Rifle Head Coach
Alan Joseph has signed four talented shooters who will join MSU's program for the 2026-27 season. The newest Eagles are James "JT" Wright III, Lucy Evans, Karis Junker and Ysabelle Martinez.
Joseph inked two from Georgia, one from Indiana and one from out just a bit further west in Oklahoma.
Wright, from Dahlonega, Ga., began shooting in eighth grade with the Lumpkin County High School team. He has competed in the state championships as a member of his high school rifle team each year. The team finished as runner-up his freshman year, with an undefeated regular season, and a third place showing his junior year. He finished seventh place individually as a junior. Wright has competed at numerous national matches, including the CMP 3P Nationals each of his high school years and the Junior Olympics his junior year after achieving the status of State of Georgia U18 Air Rifle and Smallbore State Champion. Wright's match personal bests are 605.3 decimal in ISSF 60-shot standing air rifle and 566 in 3-position Smallbore. His high school personal record is 295.
Wright has been a member of the National Honor Society, Fellowship of Christian Athletes (serving in a leadership role), and Health Occupation Students of America during his high school years. He played baseball from age four to his freshman year and was a member of his high school's tennis and golf teams during different years. Wright maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout high school while taking honors and college courses. He plans to major in pre-med at Morehead State.
From Rydal, Ga., Evans began shooting in the eighth grade with her local 4-H club. In the same year, she began practicing with the Cartersville (Ga.) High School Rifle team. As a member of 4-H Project SAFE, she has been on multiple state winning teams, is an individual State winner twice, and served as a National 4-H Shooting Sports Ambassador. At Cartersville High School, Evans was team captain for three years and was the first ever in school history to shoot a state qualifying score of 292/300. She has been a member of the all-region and all-state teams and has been the first in her school's history to commit to join an NCAA Division I program.
Her personal bests include 563 in Smallbore and 594 in Air Rifle. Evans is an avid member of 4-H, SkillsUSA, Work-Based Learning, and will be an Honors with Distinction high school graduate. She plans to major in geoscience at MSU.
Junker is from Mustang, Okla., and began shooting at the Izaak Walton League of America range in Centerville, Va., when she was 13. She was a member of the Mavericks Rifle Team, where she was named Second-Team All-Metro in her second year of competitive shooting. She also earned a spot on the Acorns Junior Rifle Club, earning several regional medals as well as a U15 Bronze medal at the Winter Air Gun Championships. After moving to Oklahoma, Junker joined the Oklahoma Sharpshooters and won a state championship in Air Rifle and a Team Silver medal at the Civilian Marksmanship Program's 3-Position National Championship.
Her match personal bests are 584 in Air rifle and 574 in Smallbore. Her accomplishments as a dedicated student-athlete earned her recognition on the floor of the Oklahoma State Legislature and from the Governor of Oklahoma. Junker and her team are working with the Oklahoma Rifle Association to encourage youth shooting sports throughout the state. She plans to major in nursing at MSU.
Martinez is from Georgtown, Ind. - just across the Ohio River from Louisville. She began shooting her freshman year of high school with the Floyd Central NJROTC Rifle team as well as the Southern Indiana Rifle and Pistol Club. She has put together three undefeated seasons in the Kentuckiana League, qualified for the Junior Olympics two consecutive years, and her NJROTC Team won the Navy JROTC Service Championships in 2024.
Martinez won first place in the U18 category at Camp Perry Regionals 3PAR twice. She was a key part of her team winning the 2025 CMP 3PAR National Championship. Martinez's personal record for Air Rifle is 593 and 573 in Smallbore. Martinez has earned her distinguished shooters badge and is also a member of the National Honor Society. She plans to study accounting at MSU.
