Army West Point Athletics
Saturday, September 30
West Point, N.Y.
9:00 AM
Army West Point
4671
vs
4648
Memphis
Rifle Posts Impressive Win in Season Opener
September 30, 2023 | Rifle
WEST POINT, N.Y. – Army's rifle team defeated Memphis, 4671-4648, in its season and Great America Rifle Conference debut Saturday at Tronsrue Marksmanship Center. It is the Black Knights' first season opening victory since the 2019-20 season, and first conference win since defeating North Carolina State in January 2022.
Senior Anusha Pakkam continued where she left off last year leading the way recording the highest smallbore score (584), taking top honors in the aggregate scoring(1174) along with finishing third in air rifle (590). Classmate Kyle Kutz earned medalist honors in air rifle with a personal best 592, was runner-up in the aggregate scoring (1169), along with placing fifth in smallbore (577).
Freshman Ashton Arlington shined in her collegiate match, placing among the leaders in both disciplines. She was tenth in smallbore (569) and aggregate scoring (1149) along with finishing 11th in air rifle (580), placing among Army's top five in smallbore and earing the sixth spot in air rifle.
HOW IT HAPPENED
SMALLBORE: Army outpointed Memphis 2320-2302 in smallbore with Pakkam (584) and sophomore Chris Jennings (580) claiming the top two spots as the Black Knights grabbed four of the top five places. Senior Claudia Sigel tied for third with a 579 followed by Kutz (577).
AIR RIFLE: Army edged Memphis 2351-2346 to complete the sweep of both disciplines. Kutz was the leader with a 592, edging Memphis' Jack Kersey by a point for that honor, with Pakkahm (590) claiming third place as the Black Knights captured two of the top three spots and placed three among the first five with Jennings posting a 588 as Army held off the Tigers.
AGGREGATE: Army's aggregate (4671) is its highest against a conference opponent since the 2021-22 season. The Black Knights earned the top three spots behind Pakkam (1174), Kutz (1169) and Jennings (1168) en route to defeating Memphis, ranked No. 8 in the Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association (CRCA) preseason poll.
HEAD COACH
"The team did great today!," commented second-year coach Leighton Dempster. " At practice we've put a lot of emphasis on focusing on the shot process and increasing our standard of excellence, so it was great to see that come out in a match setting. "Opening the season with a conference win puts us in a great position to prepare for our first away match vs MIT in a few weeks. We have a lot left in the tank so I'm excited for the next match!"
TEAM CAPTAIN
"We've been focused and training hard, so it was awesome to see us come out of the gate ready and unfazed," stated team captain Briggs Moore.
UP NEXT
Army, idle next week, takes to the road for a non-conference match against MIT on October 14th.
Senior Anusha Pakkam continued where she left off last year leading the way recording the highest smallbore score (584), taking top honors in the aggregate scoring(1174) along with finishing third in air rifle (590). Classmate Kyle Kutz earned medalist honors in air rifle with a personal best 592, was runner-up in the aggregate scoring (1169), along with placing fifth in smallbore (577).
Freshman Ashton Arlington shined in her collegiate match, placing among the leaders in both disciplines. She was tenth in smallbore (569) and aggregate scoring (1149) along with finishing 11th in air rifle (580), placing among Army's top five in smallbore and earing the sixth spot in air rifle.
HOW IT HAPPENED
SMALLBORE: Army outpointed Memphis 2320-2302 in smallbore with Pakkam (584) and sophomore Chris Jennings (580) claiming the top two spots as the Black Knights grabbed four of the top five places. Senior Claudia Sigel tied for third with a 579 followed by Kutz (577).
AIR RIFLE: Army edged Memphis 2351-2346 to complete the sweep of both disciplines. Kutz was the leader with a 592, edging Memphis' Jack Kersey by a point for that honor, with Pakkahm (590) claiming third place as the Black Knights captured two of the top three spots and placed three among the first five with Jennings posting a 588 as Army held off the Tigers.
AGGREGATE: Army's aggregate (4671) is its highest against a conference opponent since the 2021-22 season. The Black Knights earned the top three spots behind Pakkam (1174), Kutz (1169) and Jennings (1168) en route to defeating Memphis, ranked No. 8 in the Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association (CRCA) preseason poll.
HEAD COACH
"The team did great today!," commented second-year coach Leighton Dempster. " At practice we've put a lot of emphasis on focusing on the shot process and increasing our standard of excellence, so it was great to see that come out in a match setting. "Opening the season with a conference win puts us in a great position to prepare for our first away match vs MIT in a few weeks. We have a lot left in the tank so I'm excited for the next match!"
TEAM CAPTAIN
"We've been focused and training hard, so it was awesome to see us come out of the gate ready and unfazed," stated team captain Briggs Moore.
UP NEXT
Army, idle next week, takes to the road for a non-conference match against MIT on October 14th.
Players Mentioned
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
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