Yes, it was cold, -25°F cold, but the Akron rifle team traveled to Fairbanks, Alaska, with the intention of heating up the ranges and that is exactly what they did.
The first match was fired at an off-campus facility called Tanna Valley Sportsmen’s Association (TVSA) on Saturday, January 18. All four teams—the University of Alaska-Fairbanks, Ole Miss, Army and Akron—filled the range. At the end of the day, Akron finished third, but fired a 4713, which is the rifle team’s best score of the season.
Results: Akron vs. Alaska-Fairbanks, Ole Miss, Army on January 18, 2025, at the TVSA range in Fairbanks, Alaska
See the full results of the match at the NCAA rifle website.
The next day was a three-way contest between Akron, Ole Miss and Army at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks’ range on campus. Still keeping things warm, Akron took second place after firing a 4711, which is the second-highest score on the campaign. (See detailed scores below.) It was such a pleasure to watch each of our athletes meet and surpass goals they have been striving for all season. It was a proud day to be an Akron Zip.
In smallbore, the battle for the top on both days was a fierce shoot-off between Akron junior Natalia Siek and redshirt senior Erin Schnupp. Both smallbore experts have been flirting with the elusive 590 out of 600, with Siek coming the closest with her 589. However, one slim point behind at 588 was Schnupp, attempting to maintain her top slot in the smallbore averages. With nearly all the Akron Zips firing in the solid 580s, the season high smallbore score of 2345 contributed to the overall success.
Akron senior Lex Kirk and Siek helped set the pace for Akron in the air rifle division by earning like scores of 594 out of 600. But the day clearly belonged to redshirt senior Gavin Perkowski, who smashed the school air rifle record. Going into his last 10 shots in air rifle, all Perkowski had to do to earn the school record was to be perfect. Yes, all he had to do was shoot 10 perfectly centered shots and the record was his. Yes, he did that, and some, garnering a stellar 599 with 55 center shots. Everyone on the range knew something big had just happened with the excitement behind the Akron bench. Perkowski is one of the hardest working team players we have. It is very appropriate to see him rewarded for all his hard work.
Results: Akron vs. Ole Miss and Army on January 19, 2025, at the Alaska-Fairbanks campus range in Fairbanks, Alaska
You can see the full results of the match at the NCAA website.
Learn more about the Akron, Ole Miss, Alaska-Fairbanks and Army rifle teams.
