Rifle Team Battles Tough Competition

Colorado Springs, Colo. -- The Nebraska women's rifle team competed well over the weekend, placing third overall on Saturday and finishing second in the air rifle on Sunday, at a match hosted by the U.S. Air Force Academy.

The Huskers competed against Alaska-Fairbanks, which won the national championship in both the air rifle and smallbore competitions last year, two teams from USAF and Wyoming.

On Saturday, Nebraska shot a combined score of 6,054 to put them in third place in the team competition. Alaska-Fairbanks took the title with a match total of 6,250. USAF Blue placed second with 6,092, while USAF Silver shot a combined 5,840 to take fourth. Wyoming rounded out the scoring with a 5,668.

Competing against 27 other competitors in the smallbore, the Huskers were led by the steady hand of freshman Amanda Trujillo, who shot a 1,161 out of a possible 1,200 to place fourth. The only other Husker to crack the top 10 was fellow freshman Nicole Allaire, who finished ninth with a score of 1,151.

Rounding out the scoring for Nebraska were Victoria Ridge (12th, 1,130 points), a freshman from Langhorne, Pa., and sophomore Rachel Spiry, who finished 19th with a score of 1,084. Nebraska's team score of 4,526 in the smallbore put them in third place behind the winner Alaska-Fairbanks (4,688) and USAF Blue (4,582). USAF Silver finished fourth with 4,386, while Wyoming rounded out the competition shooting a 4,227.

In the air rifle competition Trujillo was again Nebraska's top shooter with a 386 out of a possible 400, while sophomore Terim Richards fired a 385, Allaire fired a 379 and Ridge finished with 378.

Coach Karen Anthony said competing against a strong team like Alaska-Fairbanks was a good experience for the Huskers.

"Our team did not shoot as well as they are capable of shooting," Anthony said. "However, it's still a really good match to be able to shoot. It's a good experience to know what the competition is and to be able to shoot shoulder to shoulder with them."

On Sunday, Nebraska faced the same competition but was unable to compete as a team in the smallbore because Spiry fell ill. Three Huskers did compete though, and both Allaire and Trujillo shot a 1,159, while Ridge fired a 1,108.

In the air rifle competition, Nebraska took second (1,537) on the strength of Richards' 388 out of a possible 400. The sophomore from Louisville, Neb., has been shooting air rifle for less than two years and Anthony said she has been a pleasant surprise.

"I am real pleased with Terim Richards' score," Anthony said. "She's been firing for about a year and three months now and she's shot the first-place score on our team, so she's doing extremely well."

Allaire followed with a 386, Trujillo fired a 385 and Ridge shot a 378 for a team total of 1,537. Alaska-Fairbanks took first with a 1,564, USAF Blue finished third with a 1,531, followed by USAF Silver (1,472) and Wyoming (1,449).

Nebraska will next be in action on Jan. 30, when the team travels to Murray, Ky., to compete in the Roger Withrow Invitational match.