Nishica, Szarenski, Emmons and Sowash Capture Titles

[USA Shooting]

Nishica, Szarenski, Emmons and Sowash Capture National Titles at Rifle/Pistol National Championships



FORT BENNING, Ga. (June 30, 2008) – Finals were held today in the Women’s Sport Pistol, Men’s Free Pistol and the Men’s and Women’s Air Rifle events at the 2008 USA Shooting Rifle/Pistol National Championships at Ft. Benning’s International Shooting Complex in Columbus, Ga., which is home of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU).



Elisabeta Nishica (Acworth, Ga.) claimed the national title in the Women’s Sport Pistol event with a total score of 1343.1. Three-time Olympian Libby Callahan (Columbia, S.C.) took second place with 1337.8 and Janine Mills (Granbury, Texas) finished in third place with 1326.8. Callahan will be competing in the Women’s Sport Pistol event at her fourth Olympic Games in Beijing this August. For the junior women, Kelsey Imig (Westminster, Mass.) captured first place with 1272.1, while Lauren Brester (Bozeman, Mont.) finished second with 1211.9 and Hannah Lewis (Colorado Springs, Colo.) took third place with a total score of 1186.0.



In the Men’s Free Pistol event, two-time Olympian and USAMU member Daryl Szarenski (Saginaw, Mich.), who will represent the U.S. on his third Olympic team in Beijing this summer, captured the national title with a total score of 1200.7. Brian Beaman (Selby, S.D.) finished in second place with 1187.4, while Szarenski’s 2008 U.S. Olympic teammate and 2004 Olympian Jason Turner (Rochester, N.Y.) finished right behind Beaman in third place with 1187.3. The National Championship title in Junior Men’s Free Pistol went to Anthony Lutz (Tonganoxie, Kan.), who finished with a total score of 1135.5. Alex Callage (Columbia, Md.) took second with 1132.3 and Nick Mowrer (Ramsay, Mont.) finished in the third spot with 1104.8.



In Men’s Air Rifle, 2004 Olympian and 2008 Olympic team member Matt Emmons (Browns Mills, N.J.) won the national title with a score of 1290.7. USAMU member Jason Parker (Omaha, Neb.), a two-time Olympian and member of the USAMU, took second place with 1288.9. Parker will represent the U.S. on the 2008 Olympic team in Men’s Air Rifle. Last year’s National Champion, Ryan Tanoue (Honolulu, Hawaii), finished in third place with 1286.1. Ethan Settlemires (Walnut, Miss.) took first place for the juniors with a score of 1282.5, while 2008 Olympic team member Stephen Scherer (Billerica, Mass.) finished in second place with 1279.1 and Dustin Chesebro (Laramie, Wyo.) took third place with 1278.7.



Amy Sowash (Richmond, Ky.) claimed the national title in Women’s Air Rifle after finishing the event with a total score of 894.9. Jamie Beyerle (Lebanon, Pa.), a 2008 U.S. Olympic team member, finished in second place with 893.3, while Meghann Morrill (Verdi, Nev.) took third with 890.7. Megan English (Boulder, Colo.) finished in first place for the junior women with 886.7. Sandra Fong (New York, N.Y.), a 2008 U.S. Olympic team member, took second with 883.8 and Ida Peterson (University of Alaska) captured third place with 883.4.



Complete Rifle/Pistol National Championship results are available on www.usashooting.org.



The schedule of events for the remainder of the 2008 Rifle/Pistol National Championships is as follows:

July 1
Men’s Air Pistol Match

Men’s Rapid Fire Pistol Match

Women’s Air Pistol Match

Men’s Prone Rifle Match

Women’s Prone Rifle Matches

July 2
Men’s Air Pistol Match and Final

Men’s Rapid Fire Match and Final

Women’s Air Pistol Match and Final

Men’s Prone Rifle Match and Final

Women’s 3 Position Match

July 3
Men’s Standard Pistol Matches

Women’s 3 Position Match and Final



July 4

Men’s Center Fire Matches

Junior Men’s Sport Pistol Matches

Men’s 3 Position Rifle Match

July 5

Men’s 3 Position Match and Final