The rifle team scored 4484 points en route to a win over the Citadel and barely losing to the Army Black Knights on Sunday by a 90 point margin. The Wolfpack hosted the Black Knights, the 2005 national rifle champions, at the Wake County Firearms Education Center in Apex, N.C. Last year, the Black Knights placed third at nationals and are regarded as one of the best teams in the country.
Yet shooting at home is a disadvantage for the Wolfpack, according to coach Keith Miller. The Wake County home to the Pack is a half-hour drive from campus. According to Miller, the Wake County range is also not on the same level as other ranges the team plays on throughout the year.
“[Our] range is fairly dark and very cold lately, so this affected the shooters,” Miller said. “One of the main reasons Army performed poorly is because our facility is not up the standards they are used to competing on.”
Afterwards, junior Thomas Knight praised his opponents.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if they made it to the NCAA championships this year and place well,” he said.
Miller echoed his player’s thoughts.
“They are just a level above us right now,” Miller said. “It’s not a sport of the day where any one team can beat any of the other teams.”
Yet, according to Miller, the team can enjoy a successful day in spite of a loss with a strong performance.
“If your team score is a good, solid team score, then it’s still a successful day, even if it’s not as high as the other team you are competing with that day,” he said. “Our overall ranking compared to the other teams, not just Army, can improve if we have a good performance.”
Knight said competing against Army had no effect — he just went out like it was any other match, concentrated on shooting, and “let the chips fall where they may.”
Knight led the team with a score of 571 in smallbore, just one point away from tying Jennifer Marshall’s team-best score for the event on the year. Meanwhile, freshman Tori Kostecki continued her successful rookie year, as she eclipsed the 570 mark for the third time with the air rifle this year with a score of 570. Kostecki’s teammates knew coming into the season that they could count on her to contribute as a freshman, and she delivered against Army.
The team just barely fell short of its 4500 point goal on the day, but lost to a team with national title hopes by only 90 points. The Citadel was also involved in the match, but the Wolfpack’s 4484 clip easily handled the Citadel by more than a 250-point margin, to take second out of the four team meet; the Citadel entered two teams, one coed and one all girls.
The Wolfpack’s loss to Army drops its overall record to 17-4 on the year and 1-4 in the Great American Rifle Conference, the premiere rifle conference in the country, according to Miller. The Wolfpack does remain undefeated in South Eastern Air Rifle Conference with a 10-0 record. The Wolfpack’s next match is next Saturday at The Wake County Firearms Education Center against the Virginia Military Institute.