Huskers Finish Second in Air Rifle at NCAA Championships

Columbus, Ohio - In its second trip to the NCAA Championships in as many years, the Nebraska rifle team walked away with a sixth-place finish Saturday, highlighted by a runner-up performance in the air rifle competition. The Huskers tallied 6,135 points, 29 points below their season average. Alaska-Fairbanks captured its third consecutive title, accumulating 6,283 points, leaving the competition in its wake. Runner-up Kentucky was 108 points behind, while West Virginia, which has won an NCAA record 13 titles, finished third with 6,174 points.

"It's really amazing when you finish sixth and wind up walking away disappointed," Coach Karen Anthony said. "The disappointment comes from knowing we were capable of shooting much better than what we did. I know they can all shoot better."

Nebraska entered the competition tied with Alaska-Fairbanks for the best air rifle qualifying score and received strong performances from freshman Melissa Downsbrough and sophomore Amanda Trujillo. Downsbrough, who hails from State College, Pa., saved her best shots for last, firing a career-high 393. Meanwhile Trujillo, who on Friday finished second in the individual air rifle competition with a 392, bettered her mark by one, recording a 393. Downsbrough and Trujillo's scores were the third highest of the match, surpassed only by Alaska-Fairbanks' Matt Emmons (398), the NCAA air rifle and smallbore champion, and Per Sandberg (394).

Although the Huskers' score of 1,547 was five points below the season average and 13 points off the season-high, even with a great day, they wouldn't have caught the Nanooks, who turned in the second-highest air rifle score in NCAA history with a 1,573.

"Our strength is in air rifle," Anthony said. "Amanda and Melissa did well and they're very pleased."

Sophomore Nicole Allaire and junior Terim Richards rounded out the air rifle team with scores of 381 and 380, respectively.

In the smallbore competition, Allaire led the Huskers with a 1,153, while Downsbrough chipped in a 1,151. Trujillo (1,144) and freshman Heather Pissos (1,140) rounded out the scoring for the Huskers. Nebraska finished sixth in the smallbore with a score of 4,567, while Alaska-Fairbanks made a clean sweep, scoring a 4,710 to claim the title.

In other news, the Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association rewarded several Huskers for their hard work on the range and off. Junior Rachel Spiry, Richards, Trujillo, Downsbrough and Pissos were all recognized for their efforts in the classroom as academic first-team All-Americans. In addition, Trujillo was named a first-team All-American in air rifle, while Richards was named to the second team.

School	Smallbore	Air Rifle	Total
1. Alaska-Fairbanks	4,710	1,573	6,283
2. Kentucky	4,636	1,539	6,175
3. West Virginia	4,651	1,523	6,174
4. Xavier	4,621	1,539	6,160
5. Murray State	4,610	1,533	6,143
6. Nebraska	4,588	1,547	6,135
7. Tennessee Tech	4,553	1,525	6,079
8. Navy	4,567	----	----
9. Jacksonville State	----	1,544	----