ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy rifle team (2-1) opens Great American Rifle Conference action this weekend as the Midshipmen host Akron (0-1) in a dual match at the Bancroft Hall Rifle Range on Saturday, Oct. 14 at 9:00 a.m. Live results will be available.
 
Accessing the USNA
The United States Naval Academy (USNA) is closed to all vehicles without a Department of Defense-approved identification card. All other visitors are encouraged to park downtown and walk through the security gates at Gate 1. When walking on, those ages 18 and over must present a photo identification card (driver's license) to gain access and those ages 17 and under must be accompanied by an adult.
 
Scouting the Midshipmen
The Midshipmen enter the first weekend of conference play after opening the season with a split against TCU and VMI. Behind top-five performances by freshman Isabella Baldwin and junior Marleigh Duncan, the Midshipmen tallied 4,702 points.
 
Competing in her first collegiate match, Baldwin posted a team-high 1,182 points to finish third overall. Her score was one point better than Duncan, who carded a score of 1,181 to finish fourth place. Baldwin was second in smallbore with a Navy-best tally of 590, while Duncan was fifth with 588 points. In air rifle, Duncan tied for fourth with 593 points, while Baldwin finished just outside the top five with a score of 592.
 
Junior Stephanie Milvain, who was listed as a starter for the Midshipmen in smallbore only, finished just outside of the top five in the event, taking sixth place with a score of 586. Senior Clarissa Layland notched a score of 574, while senior Deonte Hayes posted a score of 567 to round out the Mids' top five starters in the smallbore competition.
 
In air rifle, Layland matched Duncan's performance with a score of 592, while junior Joshua Potts, who was a starter in air rifle only, followed with a score of 587. Hayes registered a score of 581 to close out the starting five in the discipline.
 
Layland finished with 1,166 aggregate points, while Hayes closed out the day with 1,148. Milvain added a 578 in air rifle for 1,164 combined points, while Potts shot a 566 in smallbore to tally 1,153 points aggregate.
 
Freshman Ryan Wee, competing in his first collegiate match was 10th in smallbore with a tally of 578, while adding an air rifle score of 578 for an aggregate score of 1,156. Sophomore Catherine Dely was second among the nonstarters with scores of 567 (SB) and 585 (AR) to close the day with 1,152 total points. Sophomore Devin Uhrich finished with 1,135 points (559 SB, 576 AR), while senior team captain Mark Dely notched scores of 564 (SB) and 560 (AR) to start his final campaign with an 1,124. Sophomores Grace Shepard (545 SB; 574 AR; 1,119 Agg) and Isabelle Zantow (538 SB; 571 AR; 1,109), along with freshman John Dely (535 SB; 543 AR; 1,078 Agg) rounded out the scoring for the Midshipmen.
 
The Mids fell to TCU who compiled 4,738 points, while besting VMI's men's and women's teams, who notched 4,509 and 4,360, respectively. TCU's Stephanie Allen, who shot a perfect 600 in air rifle, claimed first overall with an 1,189 aggregate score, one point ahead of teammate Katie Zaun's 1,188 (589 SB; 599 AR).
 
Scouting the Opposition
West Virginia bested the Akron rifle team in the season opener for both schools, 4,751 to 4,996, on Saturday, Oct. 7.
 
In the smallbore division, five of the Zips posted marks in the 580s lead by a 586 from senior Erin Schnupp. Schnupp and junior Rachel Engels had the perfect 10-shot series of 100, in the kneeling position.
 
Air rifle was a little sweeter for the Zips with three of the top four counting team members in the elite 590s followed by a couple of 589s. Leading the charge for Akron was senior Gavin Perkowski with a 596 score, one point from breaking the school record. Senior Brendan Seitz set a career-high score of 593.
 
Up Next
Following the match against Akron, Navy will return to action Saturday and Sunday, October 21-21 as the Mids make their first road trip of the season. The Midshipmen head to Oxford, Miss. to take on fellow GARC member Ole Miss on Saturday, Oct. 21 before continuing on to Memphis, Tenn. for a GARC match against Memphis.