2013 Montgomery Bell Academy Rifle Classic

By Sarah Hall, CMP

The CMP’s Mobile Range traveled to Nashville, TN, for the Montgomery Bell Academy Rifle Classic. The Mobile Range consists of 60 MEGAlink electronic targets, which allow for instant results and uploaded scores to the CMP’s Competition Tracker website, http://ct.thecmp.org/app/v1/index.php?do=match&task=edit&tab=results&match=10762.

The Montgomery Bell Academy (MBA) in Nashville, TN, kicked off the 2013 high school air rifle season with their annual Rifle Classic. Over 350 competitors traveled to the prestigious all-boys school to compete during the October 18-19 weekend. A total of 217 sporter competitors and 141 precision shooters, representing 21 different states, fired in the Three-Position Air Rifle event.

Sarah Osborn, of Summit Christian Academy, is pictured here in the kneeling position. Sarah was the top precision class finisher with a score of 688.9.

The Civilian Marksmanship Program’s mobile range traveled to Tennessee for the second year in a row to support the event. The mobile range, which consists of 60 MEGAlink electronic targets, was first used during the 2012 Rifle Classic. Many of the athletes also competed in an International event fired on the school’s Suis target system. With all results being fired on electronic targets, the MBA has created an elite junior match, which showcases the exciting visual advances of the sport. Spectators could enjoy watching their team’s shots displayed on 60” TV’s and instant results at the end of the relays.

Central Crossing High School’s Daylin VanSteenburg won the Sporter Match for the second year in a row. Placing second was Justine Hamilton, third was Kevin Hamilton, fourth was Adrian Gibson and fifth was Sylvanna Parra.

This year’s event was particularly exciting to watch. In the sporter final, first place winner Daylin VanSteenburg, of Central Crossing High School, won for the second year in a row, winning by a seven-point lead. Justine Hamilton, of Zion Benton Township High School, made up a five-point gap to move from seventh to second place while also shooting the highest final, 89.5. A teary-eyed Justine was embraced in the middle of a group hug at the end of her final from all her Zion Benton teammates. Third place was taken by fellow Zion Benton teammate, Kevin Hamilton.

Sarah Osborn placed first in the Precision Class. Reagan Abernathy placed second, followed by Zachery Guffey in third. Mary Pratt and Glen Lauzon placed fourth and fifth, respectively.

In the precision category Sarah Osborn, Summit Christian Academy, and Reagan Abernathy, Harpeth Hall Academy, dominated both the Three-Position and International event. Osborn, who had an impressive start to the Three-Position match with a 200-20x prone score, won in the final with a 688.9. Sarah also notably won the International match with a 593. Abernathy, who shot the highest 3P final with a 102.3, came in second in both events. Third place 3P finisher was Zachery Guffey (Mesquite High School).

A fun bonus event to the MBA Rifle Classic is the Coaches Match. The top three coaches are shown here on the podium.

A highlight to the MBA match weekend has always been the bonus events hosted along with the competition. This includes the Coaches Match, where coaches compete in a 10-shot final, heckled on by their team. Winning Coach Sam Richardson from Helina, AL, plans on using his ACE hardware prize money to buy supplies for establishing his club’s new range. Another addition for this match is the many clinics hosted by the Army Marksmanship Unit. The event also drew in nearby college coaches who were in attendance to watch the nearly-full seven relays.

The MBA Rifle Class also includes a 60-shot standing match. Pictured here are the top three International winners.

The 2014 MBA Rifle Classic will be held October 17-18. Additional photos may be viewed on the CMP’s Photo website at http://cmp1.zenfolio.com/p1070514282. 

Results:
Sporter Individuals:
1. Daylin VanSteenburg (Central Crossing HS) 631.9
2. Justine Hamilton (Zion Benton Township HS) 624.5
3. Kevin Hamilton (Zion Benton Township HS) 624.3

Precision Individuals:
1. Sarah Osborn (Summit Christian Academy) 688.9
2. Reagan Abernathy (Harpeth Hall Academy) 687.3
3. Zachery Guffey (Mesquite HS) 685.9

Sporter Teams:
1. Zion-Benton: 2120  (Kevin Hamilton 537, Zachary Dumyahn 530, Alec Dumyahn 527, Kayla Savage 526)
2. David Crockett NJROTC: 2113  (John-Keith Verble 540, Felix Gampe 530, Will Anderson 528, Ashlee Lockwood 515)
3. R-S Central HS: 2098  (Alexandria Shepherd 529, Jesse Bradley 528, Michael Murphy 522, Donnivan Weeks 519)

Precision Teams:
1. Montgomery Bell Academy: 2288  (Andrew Dupuis 578, Daniel Biegl 575, Nathan Sharp 569, Zach Wassynger 566)
2. Sarasota Military Academy: 2278  (Laney Funk 578, Alyssa Bruno 571, Jordan Saba 570, Brett Klein 559)
3. East Coweta Precision 2276  (Destiny Collier 580, Glen Lauzon 580, Conan Collier 565, Charles Matthews 551)