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National Junior Olympic Championships Concludes with Pistol Events COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. (April 25, 2010)
Posted by Junior Shooters
By: Katie McGinty (USA Shooting)
All photos provided by USA Shooting
The 2010 National Junior Olympic Championships came to a close on April 25th 2010 with the pistol finals. In Men’s 10m Air Pistol, Will Brown aced the competition with a final score of 1,231.0. Brown, of Twin Falls, Idaho, entered the final with a 22-point lead and shot a final score of 97.0 to secure a gold medal. Silver medalist, Matthew Pueppke of Amenia, N.D., tallied a total of 1,204.3 points. Following Pueppke, Grant Adams of Manhattan, Kan., shot a total of 1,193.0 points. In the J2 Category, the winner was James Starr of Mulan, Neb. (Top right: Will Brown, air pistol champion, with a line of the participants at the Junior Olympics shooting their match air pistols for the 10-meter air pistol event.)
(Olympic Dreams Start Here is right! The All-Star team in Men’s Air Pistol – top eight finishers.)
Starr was just two points ahead of silver medalist Andrew Hazelton of Westford, Mass., who finished with 1,083 points. Alexander Chichkov of Temple Terrace, Fla., found third with 1,077 points. High J3 shooter was Nicholas Sargent of Fort Benning, Ga. Sargent shot for 1,069 total points. In second place was Ryan Davis of Plano, Texas with 1,021 points. Blake Culbertson, New Berry, S.C., was the J3 bronze medalist with a score of 974 points. 
(Scores are posted electronically on a large mach board (left) and each shooters position has an individual electronic target so the shooter can see where each shot hit.)
Women’s 10m Air Pistol was led by Courtney Anthony of Lincoln, Neb. Anthony took home gold with a final score of 832.3 points. Alana Townsend of Calisbel, Mont., shot a total score of 825.1 points for the silver medal. Another Montana native, Kylie Gagnon of Bozeman, earned third place with 819.6 points. In the J2 Category, Starlin Shi of Patomic, Maryland, narrowly won gold above Beth Lutz of Annville, Pa. Shi and Lutz both had match totals of 709, but Shi beat Lutz by two points in M2 scores. (Above right: Notice the partitions separating each of the shooters. L to R, first two are Hannah Lewis & Starlin Shi.)
(All-Star Sport Pistol women’s team – top eight finishers.)
In third place was Taylor Gallegos of Prosper, Texas with 703 points. High J3 competitor was Kathryn Kananen, Florisent, Colo., with 709 points. In second place was Janice Choi of Los Angeles, Calif., with 699 points. With a total score of 693, Naomi Lau of Aloha, Oregon took home bronze honors.
Joseph Totts of Randolf, Ohio, won the Men’s 25m Sport Pistol competition with a total score of 763 points. Following Totts was silver medalist Christopher Hudock of Rawling, N.C., with a final score of 749.7 points. Bronze medalist Wen Chyan of Denton, Texas, shot for 744.8 points. In the J2 Category, Alexander Chichkov captured gold with a total of 539 points. Thomas Ricks of Crystal Springs, Miss., won second place with a solid score of 530 points. In third place, Andrew Hazelton shot for 526 total points. High J3 honors belong to Vladlen Vronsky, Brighton, Mass, with a match score of 488 points.
(Above: Men’s pistol competition – shooting at this level requires a steady hand and a keen eye!)
In Women’s 25m Sport Pistol, Courtney Anthony once again claimed top spot with a final score of 760.7 points. She was followed by Westminster, Mass. Native Kelsey Imig with a score of 743.8 and Hannah Lewis of Colorado Springs with 726.7 points. Another repeat in the J2 Category, Starlin Shi once again claimed gold. Shi shot for a match score of 528 points. She was followed by Taylor Gallegos with 525 points and Elizabeth Buerling of Uniontown, Ohio, with 460 points. (Above right: These young ladies are top pistol shooters with skills that are both mental and physical. First lady is Air Pistol champion Courtney Anthony)
USA Shooting would like to recognize and thank our dedicated volunteers for all their hard work. This competition would not be possible without their help and support. Thank you athletes, fans, volunteers, and all others for a successful competition series!
Nnooks Franz and Bures Win Gold
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. (April 20, 2010)
The University of Alaska’s rifle team is a powerhouse because of the exceptional talent on their roster and the potential it attracts. At this year’s Junior Olympic National Championship, the majority of the awards podium and top-eight finishers were bedecked in blue and yellow.
(Above: The standing position for air rifle is
tough> Just a little wobble will put off the shot.)
Leading the way with Men’s 50m Three Position Rifle was Scott Franz of Livermore, Colorado. A freshman on the Alaska-Fairbanks team, Franz captured gold with a final score of 2,405.1 points. He was followed by Daniel Hermsmeier of Chesterfield, Missouri, who shot 2,386.5 and Michael Matthews of Johns Creek, Ga., with a total of 2,386.4 points. Leading the J2 category was Ryan Anderson of Great Falls, Va., with 2,272 total points. He was followed by Soren Butler of Casselton, N.D., who also shot 2,272, but had fewer center shots than Anderson. Receiving the bronze medal was Remington Lyman of Meriden, Conn., with a total score of 2,271 points. The J3 category winner was Alex Gestl of Palmyra, Pa., who walked away with 2,174 points. The next closest shooter was Garret Stearns of Round Rock, Texas, with 2,170 points. Samuel Portis of Inez, Texas, was the bronze medalist with 2,158 points.
Another blue and yellow Nanook to find the upper podium was Cole Bures of Odell, Ne., who won the Men’s 50m Prone Rifle. Bures is part of the strong freshman core that makes up the University of Alaska-Fairbanks rifle team.
(Left: Notice the light guard over the shooting eye so the shooter’s focus remains on the sights and the target.)
He shot a final of 103.3 – not the highest, but enough to maintain his one-point lead for a gold medal and a total of 1288.3 points. Less than a point shy of tying Bures was Jimmie Cooper of Columbus, Ga. Cooper shot for a total of 1,287.4 points and secured the silver medal. In third was Ryan Dunham-Bender of Delta, Junction, Alaska, with 1,283.5 points. Continuing to enjoy the view from the top was J2 gold medalist Ryan Anderson with 1,179 points. To his right on the podium, and with a silver medal around his neck was Remington Lyman with 1,177 points. Finishing strong in third was Steven Hahn of Middle Grove, N.Y. Making a repeat performance in the J3 category was gold-medalist Alex Gestl with a total of 1,160 points. Joining Gestl again on the podium was Garret Stearns who placed second with a total of 1,134 points. Local J3 shooter, William Anti of Colorado Springs, Colo., was the bronze medalist for the prone competition.
Dustin Chesebro Conquers the Men’s 10m Air Rifle
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. (April 16, 2010)
The Men’s 10m Air Rifle of the 2010 USA Shooting National Junior Olympic Championships concluded this afternoon with competition down to the last shot. University of Alaska- Fairbanks freshman, 2nd place NCAA Rifle Team title, and Laramie, Wyoming native, Dustin Cheseboro, edged out the competition with a final score of 99.2 and total score of 1,269.2. Cheseboro and Michael Matthews of Johns Creek, Georgia, were tied with 1,170 coming into the final round. Matthews fell just shy with a total score of 1,269.0. In this game of tenths, Casselton, North Dakota’s Soren Butler found third place with 1,268.9. Needless to say, this wasn’t a diversified field. Leading the J2 category was Garret Spurgeon of Canton, Missouri with a final score of 1,268. The silver medalist was Leslie, Michigan’s Amos Peck with a total of 1,165 points, followed by Ryan Anderson of Great Falls, Virginia with 1,164 points.
Though still shorter than the silver and bronze medalist when standing on the podium, 13-year-old Mitchell Van Patten of Meridian, Idaho proved himself as the J3 gold-medalist with 1,137 points.
(Above: 13-year old Mitchell Van Patten certainly has something to be proud of as do all of the competitors!)
He led Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania’s Noah Marne who tallied 1127 points and bronze medalist Jason Spaude of Saginaw, Michigan with 1,100 points. Saturday begins the first smallbore matches of the NJOSC with finals on Monday. Stay tuned for more exciting Men’s JO Rifle competition.
Scherer and Furrer Dominate NJOSC Women’s Rifle 10m and 50m
COLORADO SPRING, COLO. (April 12, 2010)
(Above: Concentration and focus, combined with the patience to wait until the right moment to pull the trigger and the strength to hold the rifle in one position until that moment arrives, are some of the keys to winning.)
On Saturday, April 10th, Sarah Scherer of Fort Worth, Texas, captured first place in Women’s 10 m Air Rifle at the 2010 USA Shooting National Junior Olympic Championships. Shortly after winning both an individual and team National Championship (NCAA), Scherer continued to shine in her first year at Texas Christian University (TCU). She tallied a final score of 892.4, topping the next competitor by 1.2 points. Following Scherer, were second-place finisher Abigail Stanec of Sharon Center, Ohio with 891.2 points and Denise Martin of Chewelah, Wash., with 891.1 points. In the NJOSC categories, high J2 athletes were gold-medalist Larissa Wright (Woodland Park, Colo.) with a score of 781, silver-medalist Kelsey Hansen (Minot, ND) with a score of 776, and bronze-medalist Kelsey McHugh (Palatine, Ill.) with a score of 776. The first-place J3 category finisher was Elizabeth Tallberg (Stratford, Conn.) with a score of 773. Second and third medalists were Shawna Griffin (Woodland Park, Colo.) with 763 points, and Sarah Banks (Huetown, Ala.) with 762 points.
(Above: The kneeling position is one of the three Olympic shooting positions used; but even it takes an enormous amount of skill.)
Scherer also shot in the women’s 50m Three Position Rifle, where she earned second place with a score of 1,261.9. The winner was Ohio State’s Amanda Furrer of Spokane, Wash., who walked away with a final score of 1266, besting the next medalist by four points. Most notably, however, is that Furrer tied a national record with her outstanding score. In third was Scherer’s teammate, TCU’s Sarah Beard of Danville, Ind., who shot for 1,255.1 points. In the 50m Three Position Rifle J2 Catgeory, the top three finishers were Forest Masters of Valdez, Alaska, Denise Martin, and Deanna Binnie of Hollsopple, Pa. Making it an outstanding week, was J3 competitor, Elizabeth Tallberg who finished first again in the J3 category. She was followed by Mackenzie Martin of Fairhaven, Mass. and 10m Air Rifle J3 silver medalist, Shawna Griffin.
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