Huskers Hunt for Conference Title This Weekend

Lincoln – The postseason begins this weekend for the Nebraska rifle program, as the Huskers will compete in the Great American Rifle Conference (GARC) Championships this weekend.

The event, which is being held virtually on campus sites, takes place on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 27-28. The smallbore competition takes place on Saturday with air rifle competing on Sunday. Live scoring will be available both days at results.megalink.no.

This weekend's meet will be a preview of the upcoming NCAA Championships, as five of the eight teams that qualified will be in action. The GARC field includes fellow NCAA qualifiers Kentucky, Memphis, Ole Miss and West Virginia as well as Akron, Army West Point, Navy and North Carolina State.

For rifle coach Rachel Martin, the GARC Championships are an opportunity to fine-tune performances in a competitive setting.

"This weekend centers on preparing for NCAAs," Martin said. "It's a good opportunity for our athletes to try some new strategies in a match and see if they hold up under pressure. We have been shooting some great scores in practice, but haven't transferred it over to matches yet."

All three individual champions are back to defend their conference title, including Emily Cheramie, who placed first in the smallbore finals. Kentucky returns a pair of individual titles including Will Shaner, who placed first in air rifle and
Mary Tucker, who was the top combined finisher in 2020. Last year, the Huskers finished fourth in the event with a team score of 4,678.

NU returns a trio of all-conference performers from last year, including Cheramie (smallbore and combined), Elena Flake (air rifle) and Macey Way (air rifle).

During last Monday's NCAA qualifier at Murray State, the Huskers fell to Memphis, 4,698-4,685. Cheramie earned top-four finishes in both events, including runner-up honors in smallbore, while Madelynn Erickson garnered the team's top effort in the air rifle with a second-place showing.