ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy rifle team (4-8) recorded a solid weekend against the defending national champion Alaska Fairbanks (6-2) at the Bancroft Hall Rifle Range in Annapolis. The Midshipmen dropped a 4712-4695 decision on Saturday, before scoring a season-high score of 4704 in a 4724-4704 loss to the Nanooks.
In eight dates of competition, the Mids have topped the 4700-point plateau four times, counting a season-high 4704 on Sunday. Additionally, Navy has come within five points of the 4700-mark on two other occasions, including on Saturday with 4695 points against the reigning champions.
"We had a solid weekend against UAF," head coach
Mike Anti said. "Our performance on Sunday was much better, shooting a season-high 4704. On Saturday, we struggled in smallbore but had a strong showing in the air rifle event and ended up shooting just below our average. On Sunday, our smallbore scores was much better with three of our counting scores being 582 or better and the fourth score just shy of the 580 mark. In air, all four scores were in the low 590s which is good but we are capable of shooting mid 590s.
"We have to work on finishing the match as strong as we start it," Anti added. "We gave up too many points on the last 10 shots across the board.
Isabella Baldwin and
Marleigh Duncan led the team both days with outstanding scores in both events and just within a couple of points of each other.
Stephanie Milvain had a great bounce back on Sunday in the smallbore event, increasing her score by 10 points which contributed to our smallbore success. We have five days to work on a few areas before our match against WVU and Akron."
Freshman
Isabella Baldwin continued her stellar rookie campaign. The Nashville native averaged a team-high 1181.0 over the two matches. She finished with 1181 on the first day of competition, finishing the match second overall to Alaska Fairbanks' Rachael Charles. On day two, Baldwin once again posted an aggregate score of 1181, finishing third overall behind Charles and Sara Karasova of UAF.
Junior
Marleigh Duncan found herself in the top 5 on both days of competition. She finished two-points back of Baldwin with a score of 1179 in the first match to finish third overall. On Sunday, Duncan added a point to her total for an aggregate tally of 1180 and a fourth-place finish.
Navy returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 27, as the Midshipmen welcome fellow GARC member Akron and West Virginia to the Bancroft Hall Rifle Range. The match is slated for 9:00 a.m. and live results will be available.
Day 1 Recap: Alaska Fairbanks 4712, Navy 4695
On Saturday, the Midshipmen tallied a collective score of 4695, just five points shy of their season average. The Mids registered a score of 2326 in smallbore as a team. In air rifle, Navy combined for a season-best performance of 2369, two points higher than its previous high (2367) against Ole Miss in October.
Baldwin paced the squad with an 1181, shooting a 586 in smallbore and a season-high 595 in air rifle. She as followed closely by Duncan who tallied a 587 in smallbore and a 592 in air rifle for an aggregate score of 1179.
Senior
Clarissa Layland was third on the team with a combined mark of 1169. She finished with a 575 in smallbore and a season-high score of 594 in air rifle.
Ryan Wee, who has continued to improve with each competition, earned a start in both disciplines. The freshman notched scores of 578 (smallbore) and 587 (air rifle) to finish fourth among Midshipmen with an aggregate tally of 1165.
Senior
Deonte Hayes returned to action with an aggregate score of 1163, which was one point shy of his season-high. He shot a smallbore score of 575, but notched a season-best score of 588 in air rifle to finish fifth on the team in the match.
Juniors
Joshua Potts and
Stephanie Milvain finished back-to-back among the Navy shooters. Potts posted scores of 570 (SB) and 587 (AR) for a combined mark of 1157 to finish three points ahead of Milvain who registered performances of 572 (SB) and 582 (AR).
Sophomores
Catherine Dely (567-581=1148),
Devin Uhrich (563-570=1133), and
Grace Shepard (540-570=1110), along with freshman
John Dely (544-563=1107) rounded out the aggregate scoring for the Midshipmen. Freshman
Chelsie Glover competed just in air rifle, registering a season-best score of 574.
Day 2 Recap: Alaska Fairbanks 4724, Navy 4704
Sunday's action against the reigning national champions saw the Midshipmen post their highest team score of the 2023-24 campaign, 4704. Navy improved its smallbore score by 10 points from Saturday to Sunday, 2336, to tie for the second-best score of the season. The Mids continued its strong scoring in air rifle, notching a 2368, which was the second-highest of the season behind the 2369 on Saturday.
Baldwin and Duncan were once again 1-2 for the Midshipmen. Baldwin matched her Saturday score of 1181, this time finishing with scores of 588 (SB) and 593 (AR). Duncan improved her score from the day before to 1180, turning in scorecards of 588 in smallbore and 592 in air rifle.
Layland earned a start in air rifle, notching a score of 592 in the event to finish with an aggregate tally of 1170. Milvain, who was a starter in smallbore, improved her smallbore score by 10 points from Saturday to Sunday to finish with a 582 in the discipline and notch a combined score of 1166.
Hayes recorded a season-best aggregate score of 1165 thanks to a 574 in smallbore and a season-high tally of 591 in air rifle. Wee finished one point back of Hayes with an 1164. The freshman used scores of 578 in smallbore and 586 in air rifle.
Navy's remaining shooters all notched season-best performances. C.Dely shot a season-high in smallbore (571) and aggregate (1155), while Potts used a season-best 588 in air rifle for a combined score of 1155. Ulrich posted season-high scores in smallbore (575), air rifle (577), and aggregate (1152), while Shepard notched her 2023-24 high in smallbore (588). J.Dely used season-best scores of 551 (SB) and 567 (AR) for a season-high aggregate tally of 1118. Glover once again only participated in air rifle, raising her season-high to 581 in the event.
