Tigers Rifle To Shoot At NCAA Championships Rehearsal Saturday

Saturday, November 7

Akron, Ohio

12:30 pm CT

University of Memphis

NCAA Championships Rehearsal Match

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Tigers Rifle To Shoot At NCAA Championships Rehearsal Saturday

Nov 06, 2015 | Rifle

Event is a preview of the 2016 NCAA Championships in March.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – It's not NCAA Championships time yet for college rifle. However, 11 of the nation's top-20 squads, including the University of Memphis, are set to shoot at the NCAA Championships Rehearsal on the University of Akron campus this weekend.

The Tigers, ranked No. 8 in this week's Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association (CRCA) poll, shoot in the event Saturday. Teams will shoot through Sunday afternoon, so final scores/results will be available late Sunday night or early Monday.

This weekend's Rehearsal match is the first time that the sport of collegiate rifle is holding this event. The University of Akron is hosting the NCAA Championships for first time in school history next March. The NCAA Championships dates are Mar. 9-12.

Head coach Butch Woolbright is excited about the event and likes the idea of his team shooting at the site of NCAA Championships, a place where the Tigers hope to be next March.

"We're looking forward to this weekend's match," said Woolbright. "There are going to be a lot of good teams, including over half of the top-20 programs in the country, shooting in the event.

"This is the first time that collegiate rifle has done something like this. This will be good for us from the standpoint that we'll get a preview of where we'll shoot for the national championships, if we are fortunate to get there.

"This weekend will be a challenge, but it's one we're looking forward to. It should be a fun weekend."

For most of the Tigers squad, this weekend's event is the first national championships-type event they will shoot in at the college level. Memphis, though, has two shooters with NCAA Championships experience in senior Beth Lee and junior Amy Fister.

Lee and Fister both were members of the 2013-14 Tigers team that placed fourth at the NCAA Championships. Lee set her career-best aggregate score (1177) and placed in the top-10 in both smallbore (5^th) and air rifle (6^th) at the 2014 NCAA Championships. Fister also shot in smallbore at the 2015 NCAA Championships and placed 20^th in the discipline.

In addition to having some NCAA Championships experience, some of the Tigers shot at Akron's facility, the Louis Frida Stile Athletics Field House, last season when they competed against the Zips. Memphis placed second in the 2014 Akron Zippy Open.

"We shot at Akron last season, so some of our upperclassmen are somewhat familiar with the venue," Woolbright said. "However, we have a couple of newcomers that have not shot there, so it will help them get comfortable with the facility. It is a bigger venue than most of the places we shoot during the season."

This weekend's match is the fifth of seven-consecutive weeks the Tigers are shooting. In years past, the Memphis schedule had some breaks. Woolbright, though, sees the benefits of keeping his squad in match-form.

"I like the schedule we have of competing each week," said Woolbright. "Having a match each week breaks up our practice schedule, and that's good for the shooters. It's easier to get them in practice mode if they know they'll be competing in a few days. It's easier to keep them motivated."

Following this weekend's NCAA Championships Rehearsal, Memphis returns to action Nov. 14 when it hosts Navy. Match time is 9 a.m. (CT) at the Global Training Academy.