The break since the last match may have let the Akron Zips hotshots cool off a little too much as they traveled to Memphis, Tenn., on Saturday, November 9. The No. 12-ranked Akron Zips rifle team fell short of the mark at the match against No. 11 Memphis, 4675 to 4711.
For Memphis, it was a season-high mark for the Tigers.
In smallbore rifle, Akron fifth-year senior Gavin Perkowski set a new season-high score of 587, landing him in the second spot for the individual smallbore standings. Akron newcomer sophomore Logan McClimans battled his way to an impressive score of 579, which tied him with senior Rachel Engels as the next two Akron shooters on the leaderboard. I was pleased to see McClimans and Engels posting scores more deserving of all the hard work they have been putting in at practice.
Perkowski again lead the Akron squad in air rifle by posting 593 out of the possible 600. This placed Perkowski in the third overall slot for the air rifle portion of the match. The next closest Akron shooters were Engels and junior Rachael Paddock with like 589 scores. I know for a fact that no one—even Perkowski—felt we performed well in the air rifle division. This is providing even more motivation to prepare for the next opportunity to perform in six days.
The top shooter for Memphis was sophomore Katrina Demerle, who walked away from the match with a 596 air rifle score and 589 in smallbore for a 1185-84X aggregate score. Demerle was ranked as the top shooter at the match on the individual aggregate leaderboard.
Results: Akron vs. Memphis on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024
You can view the full results of the match at the NCAA rifle website.
No. 12 Akron will host No. 10 Navy and No. 13 Nebraska next weekend. As tight as the rankings are packed together, this match will garner national attention as the three teams will battle for a chance to advance in the rankings. The targets may be viewed live at this link. The fun will begin on the Robert A. Pinn Shooting Range in Akron, Ohio, at 8:30 a.m on Sunday, November 17.
