COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The 2005 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Rifle Championships closed out the first event of its two-day competition with the most exciting finale’ it has seen in a long time. The University of Alaska-Fairbanks (UAF) sophomore, Matt Rawlings, of Wharton, Texas, came back from fifth place after the qualifying round to clinch his second-straight NCAA Championship title in the smallbore three-position event.
Rawlings scored a 101.5 in the final to finish in a tie with UAF teammate and close friend Jamie Beyerle (Lebanon, Pa.). They were then forced into a shoot-off for the Championship title, which Matt won with a 9.3.
“I feel bad for her,” Rawlings said after the match. “She has been really sick these last couple of days and I just hope she feels better tomorrow. She is a huge asset for our team.”
Beyerle went into the smallbore finals, leading the competition with a 588 qualifying score. Joseph Hall, of Carrollton, Ga., was the next closest competitor with a 587. Hall, a freshmen at Jacksonville State University, finished with a 94.9 final score, dropping him to fifth overall.
Kristina Fehlings, of the University of Nebraska, finished in third with a 685.2, just three-tenths of a point under Rawlings and Beyerle. The Army’s Christopher Abalo just missed the top-three with a 684.6 total score.
The UAF Rifle Team is looking for a record seventh-straight Championship title, and after these first day’s results, it looks as if they will have no problem walking away with the win. They lead the next closest competitor by six points as they head into tomorrow’s air rifle matches.
The NCAA Rifle Championships continue tomorrow at 8 a.m. at the Olympic Shooting Complex in Colorado Springs. For more information on this event, please contact Sara Greenlee at 719-866-4896.
Rawlings Wins Second-Straight in Exciting Final Comeback
Moderators: pilkguns, m1963, David Levene, Spencer, Richard H