The four Ohio Valley Conference rifle teams will compete this weekend in the 18th-annual OVC Rifle Championships. The event, which will be held Feb. 4-5 at UT Martin, will feature Jacksonville State, Morehead State, Murray State and UT Martin, all four of which are currently ranked in the CRCA top-20.
Ninth ranked Jacksonville State looks to reclaim the OVC title after falling short to Murray State the past two seasons. The Gamecocks had previously won five overall OVC Championships from 2005-09. 2011’s Smallbore MVP Andrea Dardas and Freshman of the Year Sam Muegge will once again be competing and looking to lead JSU back to the NCAA Championships after a fourth-place finish last year.
No. 10 Murray State hopes to make it an OVC Championship three-peat after winning the title the past two seasons. Last season’s Air Rifle MVP Kaitlin Cleven and First-Team Smallbore selection Kyle Donnan hope to lead the Racers to victory after finishing fifth in the Withrow Invitational on Jan. 28.
No. 19 Morehead State returns to the OVC Championships after a strong season, including wins over UT Martin, Virginia Military Institute and Columbus State. The Eagles are led by sophomore Mary Saenger, who was named to both the Smallbore and Air Rifle All-Newcomer teams last season.
Twentieth ranked UT Martin will look to claim their first OVC title at the Skyhawk Rifle Range this weekend. The Skyhawks come into the championships on a high note after tying for first with Memphis at the UT Martin Invitational last weekend, with freshman Steven Hahn placing first overall in smallbore and fourth in air rifle.
The OVC Championship begins at 8am Saturday morning with the smallbore relays, followed by air rifle on Sunday.
Be sure to check www.ovcpsorts.com after the completion of each day’s events for results.
2012 Ohio Valley Conference Rifle Championship Schedule
Saturday, Feb. 4 – Smallbore
Relay 1 – 8am
Relay 2 – 10:45am
Relay 3 – 1:30pm
Relay 4 – 4:15pm
Sunday, Feb. 5 – Air Rifle
Relay 1 – 8am
Relay 2 – 11am