WEST POINT, N.Y. – The #8 Navy rifle team (9-4) posted 5904-5839 victory against #16 Army (4-11) in the annual Star Match, which is part of the overall Army-Navy Star Series, presented by USAA, on Saturday at the Tronsrue Marksmanship Center in West Point, N.Y. The win gave the Midshipmen their fifth straight Star win and the seventh in the last eight Star matches.
"We had a great match against Army," head coach
Mike Anti said after the match. "Taking the win for the fifth year in a row! This was a total team victory. This is a big deal for our team winning the Star, especially for our seniors defeating Army every year of their collegiate career and being able to sew four stars on their letter sweater."
The Midshipmen claimed the top three performances with six Navy shooters finishing in the top 10 in on the day.
Isabella Baldwin, who led all scorers, earned the Josh Watson Memorial Trophy for being the Midshipmen's top finisher. It was the second consecutive time the junior claimed the honor.
"Our MVP was
Isabella Baldwin shooting an amazing combined score of 1189. She is also the winner of the Josh Watson Memorial Trophy, which goes to the top Navy athlete in the Star Match.
"We had a number of our younger athletes shoot personal records in a high-pressure situation, which bodes well for the future," Anti continued. "
Preston Everette, one of our freshmen, shot 10 points over his personal best which is very impressive. Our top three shooters all shot a 590 or better in smallbore and also shot 595 or better in air. I am very proud of everyone on the team. Today, they showed their toughness and grit in a very high-pressure event."
Scoring for the Star Match featured eight starters for each team in smallbore and air rifle with the top-five scores counting toward each team's final score. The NCAA scoring model of starting five shooters in each event with the top-four scores counting was still used for NCAA Championship qualification purposes.
The Mids tallied 2933 in smallbore and 2971 for its 5904 points in Army-Navy scoring. In addition, the Midshipmen topped the Black Knights in the NCAA scoring format, 4733-4674. The 4733 was the second-best score in program history. The Mids' NCAA smallbore score of 2354 tied for second-best in the record book, while the air rifle score of 2379 was one point shy of cracking the Mids' top 10 in the discipline.
Baldwin led all shooters on the day with an aggregate score of 1189. The score matched her career-best performance and tied for the fifth-best in program history. The junior started the day with a score of 591 in smallbore, but elevated her aggregate total with a 598 in air rifle.
Senior
Parker Haydin and freshman
Tyler Wee followed Baldwin with scores of 1187 to claim the next two spots on the podium. Haydin led all shooters in smallbore with a score of 592, adding a 595 in air rifle for his 1187. The score was the best of the season for Haydin. T. Wee carded an opening round score of 590 in smallbore. The freshman upped his tally in air rifle with a 597 for an aggregate score of 1187.
Devin Uhrich followed with a career-high score of 1171. The senior matched a personal best in smallbore with a 579 before matching his career-high in air rifle with a 592.
Navy's next five shooters all finished in the 1160s. Freshman
Preston Everette posted a score of 1169, which topped his previous high (1157) by 12 points. He set new single-season marks with a 586 in smallbore and a 583 in air rifle.
Chelsie Glover continued her successful junior season with a new career-high 1167. She topped her previous best score in smallbore with a 581, while adding a 586 in air rifle. Seniors
Grace Shepard and
Catherine Dely followed with an 1164 and 1163, respectively. Shepard tied her career-best in aggregate thanks to a 575 in smallbore and 589 in air rifle. C. Dely, the team captain, used scores of 574 (SB) and 589 (AR) to help secure her fourth Star. R. Wee notched scores of 577 in smallbore and 584 in air rifle to give the junior an aggregate total of 1161.
Audrey Hart (569 SB; 580 AR; 1149 Agg.),
Bennett Hilgenberg (550 SB; 576 AR; 1126 Agg.), and
John Dely (545 SB; 565 AR; 1110 Agg.) rounded out the scoring for the Midshipmen. Hart tied a career high in aggregate scoring thanks to a new season best in smallbore, while Hilgenberg notched new personal bests in smallbore and aggregate. J. Dely set new season bests in all three disciplines.
Up next, Navy will travel to Charleston, S.C. for a pair of road matches against The Citadel on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 14-15. Competition is slated for 9:00 a.m. both days.
