Collegiate Rifle: WVU Moves To No. 2, Kentucky Falls To No. 13

Alaska-Fairbanks remains at No. 1, while West Virginia University jumps to No. 2 in this week's Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association (CRCA) poll for the 2021-2022 rifle season, which were released on November 10. The weekly CRCA rankings are based on each team’s score from the last score recorded in competition by a team.

The undefeated Alaska-Fairbanks rifle team last competed on October 31, with a victory against the Citadel 4736-4593. After a nearly two-week hiatus, the team heads south for a match against No. 14 NC State in Annapolis, Md., on November 13.

WVU battled TCU in Indiana on November 6, squeaking out the victory in a close match, 4724-4723. Leading the way for the WVU rifle team was sophomore Molly McGhin, who not only was the top individual shooter at the match, but also tied the school record in air rifle with a score of 600.

Texas Christian University moved from No. 4 to No. 3 after the close loss against WVU in Indiana. TCU's top performance came from sophomore shooting sensation Stephanie Grundsøe with a 1189 aggregate.

Perhaps the biggest story of the week is that of Kentucky, who fell from the No. 2 spot to No. 13 after losing to No. 4 Ole Miss at home on November 6, 4716-4675. Kentucky Head Coach Harry Mullins elaborated about the tough loss for the defending 2021 NCAA rifle champion team.

"I am very disappointed for our shooters. They have worked very hard and for them not to get the numbers they were looking for is always disheartening. I feel we have a lot more in us than what we showed today. The upside of today is that it gave us plenty to work on. We will have to get back up and on the range next week for another pair of tough matches. This is a very competitive season and the parity is very close."

Finally, Akron had a big jump in the rankings this week, moving from No. 13 to No. 7 despite posting a loss to No. 5 Murray State on November 6. Strong shooting from the Akron rifle team pushed them into the top 10.

See all of the week seven CRCA Top 20 collegiate rifle teams below.

Week 7: College Rifle Coaches Association Top 20

1. Alaska
2. West Virginia
3. TCU
4. Ole Miss
5. Murray State
6. Air Force
7. Akron
8. Ohio State
9. Navy
10. Nebraska
11. Morehead State
12. Army
13. Kentucky
14. NC State
15. JSU
16. Memphis
17. Georgia Southern
18. Citadel
19. North Georgia
20. UTM

Lead photo of the WVU rifle squad courtesy of WVU Athletic Communications.