Rifle Faces NCAA Champion West Virginia Saturday

Saturday, November 11

Memphis, Tenn.

9 am

University of Memphis

West Virginia

Nov 10, 2017 | Rifle

Match serves as Senior Day for the Tigers.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – For the second time in less than a month, the University of Memphis is welcoming a defending NCAA champion to the Bluff City.

On Oct. 20, the Tigers basketball squad hosted the 2017 NCAA men's basketball champion North Carolina Tar Heels in a closed scrimmage at FedExForum.

And now just over three weeks later, the Tigers rifle team is doing the same, as it shoots against five-time defending NCAA champion West Virginia. The Mountaineers have won five-straight national crowns from 2013-17.

Tigers Tidbits

A Tiger who had a part in two of West Virginia's recent NCAA titles is head coach Dan Hermsmeier. The first-year Memphis mentor served as a graduate assistant on the Mountaineers staff for the 2014-15 and 2015-16 championship seasons.
It's hard to believe, but Saturday's home match also serves as the Tigers' Senior Day. Saturday is Memphis' final home match of the 2017-18 campaign. The Memphis seniors are Haylea Broughton, Makennon Doran and Eli Rischling.
Two seasons ago when the Tigers shot against West Virginia in Memphis, four shooters tied or set career-bests at the time. Two of those four – Leighton Dempster and Makennon Doran – shoot Saturday.
Although West Virginia shot in the Bluff City in previous seasons, Saturday's match is the Mountaineers first at the Memphis Rifle Facility, the Tigers' new on-campus home.
The Tigers are looking for their top home score of the season Saturday to improve their chances for the NCAA postseason in March. Included in the calculations to determine the top-eight teams that make the NCAA Championships is each program's top home score. To date, the Tigers' best home mark is 4611 vs. Akron Oct. 14.
Memphis is ranked No. 10 in the latest Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association (CRCA) poll. It is the second-straight week the Tigers are ranked in the top-10.