LEXINGTON, Va. | Behind a school record smallbore score of 2,289, the University of North Georgia rifle team finished first out of five teams at an air rifle competition hosted by Virginia Military at VMI’s Kilbourne Hall.
North Georgia added an air rifle score of 2,221 for an aggregate score of 4,510, which was seven points clear of runner-up VMI (4,503).
The smallbore score of 2,289 bettered the previous school record of 2,271 by 18 points. The previous record was set on two occasions, most recently last spring at the Withrow Invitational hosted by Murray State.
Andrew Abernathy led the way for UNG with a smallbore score of 564, which was good for first place out of 35 shooters.
Dakota Spivey (556, 5th), Brianna Shaw (553, 6th), Kyle Bailey (548, 7th) and David Turner (546, 9th) each posted top-10 finishes for the Nighthawks.
In the air rifle competition, Abernathy again led the way with a 574, which was good for second overall out of 36 shooters.
Maggie Mason (574, 3rd), Bailey (571, 4th), Dakota Spivey (570, 5th), Shaw (570, 6th) and Turner (570, 7th) finished in consecutive order to each register top-10 showings.
The UNG rifle team returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 14 when the Nighthawks host a Southeastern Air Rifle Conference (SEARC) event at the COL. Raymond C. Hamilton Rifle Range. The event will be the final competition of the fall semester for North Georgia.
Team Standings
1. North Georgia, 4,510
2. VMI Mixed, 4,503
3. VMI Women, 4,282
4. Georgia Military, 4,244
5. Penn State, 4,169
Last 10