Off day for Akron Sharpshooters

[Zipsrifle]

This was another chance for the team to knock off what has historically been one of the top teams in the country. The Zips were way off the mark this week We need to get things in gear and get the scores improving as we move towards the NCAA Championshp qualifier. Again, their was no clear breakpoint between the first and 2nd teams..... The Zips have VMI and Penn State this weekend, then have two weeks to get ready for the NCAA Qualifier. I hope this is the low point and we put up some huge scores this weekend in a big ramp towards the Qualifier. We need to hit 4600 this weekend! Click Me!Press ReleaseDate: January 21, 2006Location: The University of AkronEvent: Three way rifle match; Akron -vs- West Virtinia University -vs- Texas Christian University WVU and TCU sneak ahead of Akron Rifle West Virginia University and Texas Christian University proved to hot to handle for the Zips sharpshooters at a match hosted by the Zips this weekend. WVU opened by posting one of their season high scores of 4603 and likewise for TCU with a 4535. Meanwhile the Zips floundered and just could not get going which ended with the Akron Gold team firing a season low score of 4503. “We did not see this one coming,†states coach Newt Engle, “Practice went well, spirits were up, but we simply did not perform.†Freshman Melissa Lussier continued with her winning ways by leading the team in smallbore with a 579 out of a possible 600. Freshman Julie DeBrita also continues to improve with an admirable 571. And the smallbore excitement also includes Blue team members Laura Kuntz (568), April Engle(563), and Michael Tokarz(563) who each continue to battle upwards towards a position on the gold team. Junior Christine Fortunato was on fire with the air rifle establishing a new career personal best score of 575 out of a possible 600. Thee othe Zips managed to break into the 570’s as Melissa Lussier (574), Michael Tokarz (571), and Julie DeBrita (570) each posted admirable scores. And in a rare turn of events, the Akron Blue team managed to pull ahead of the Gold team not only in air rifle, but also in the total aggregate by one slim point. Coach Engle states the team has a lot of work to do to figure out what happened and prepare for the upcoming matches. The test of how the Zips can recover will occur in one week when the Zips face off in another three way match against the Virginia Military Institute and Penn State University. These matches will be hosted by the Zips at the last home match of the season. The matches will start at 9 am in the marksmanship training facility located in Schrank Hall South room #7. NewtNotes:This match was designated as the Zip Zone for the rifle team and it was absolutely wonderful to see so many of the over 400 members of the Zips athletic family come to learn about rifle and cheer for the home team. Thanks Kevin and Barbara, your presence meant a lot to the team. The Kuntz family provided a literal feast for all the teams and a huge thanks to our unsung hero, assistant coach Bryan Cargould who not only hooked up all the AV stuff for Zip Zone, but also scored every single target for this match. A long 12 hour day, all for a hand shake, Wow!Smallbore Rifle Scores: *Gold team, ** Blue team579* - Melissa Lussier 571* - Julie DeBrita 568** - Laura Kuntz 563** - April Engle 563** - Michael Tokarz 561* - Megan Reinking 554** - Christine Fortunato 550* - Stephanie Elmore 544 - Cody Shields 542 - Adam Hyde 517 - Ashley Pawlak 2261 Akron “Gold†Smallbore Team Total 2248 Akron “Blue†Smallbore Team Total==============================================================Air Rifle Individual Scores: *Gold team, ** Blue team575** - Christine Fortunato - New Career Personal Best! 574* - Melissa Lussier 571* - Michael Tokarz 570* - Julie DeBrita 567** - Stephanie Elmore 566** - April Engle 555 - Cody Shields 548** - Laura Kuntz 543 - Ben Soehnlen527* - Megan Reinking 514 - Adam Hyde 2242 Akron “Gold†Air Rifle Team Total 2256 Akron “Blue†Air Rifle Team Total==============================================================

[zip37]

SLOPPY FLOOR GAME .

[msopher]

Why is rifling a sport?

[zippyrifle32]

what do you mean? rifle shooting is a very old sport and was a part of the original modern olympics. there is a lot more to it than most people think. often times people think we just point our guns and pull the trigger, while that is true in part, there is a lot more to it physically and mentally. while most sports needs its athletes to be exert as much physical energy (like running and agility), rifle is a sport of trying to control and inhibit the body's natural movements (such as pulse) and be consistant enough to do so to shoot a ten everytime. like most sports, to preform at the top level your body has to be physically conditioned, but the difference is that during actual competition we are not trying to move them to out manuver our opponent. people don't realize how much strength it takes to hold a rifle steady, not to mention holding one steady for 60 or even 120 shots. when you're shooting standing you have an stand to rest your gun on between shots, but for everyshot you must lift a 13lb rifle then hold it for 30-40 seconds (depending on the person), and be able to be steady enough to take out the dot of an i at 50 feet. you can also notice in the picture that we wear some funky looking outfits. made usually out of thick stiff canvas, the outfits help with some stability, dampens pulse, and gives back support in standing. while rifle is one of the safest sports (very few sport related injuries) the back support is necessary because of the back bend in standing that is used to compensate for the weight of the rifle.then there is the mental aspect of shooting. while the top shooters are physically fit, flexible enough for their positions, and have a high control over pulse and breathing (most olympic shooters can actually slow their pulse down enough to take a shot between heart beats) most of the sport lies within the head of the athlete. you must be able to stay calm and relaxed if a bad shot occurs, and not be distracted while you are shooting. that may sound easy, but to stay at a high focus level for 30-40 minutes while you're in position is tough. it takes a lot of practice and training. then there is the pressure in big matches, like the ncaa championships. shooting is one of the toughest mental sports and is very similar to golf or pitching in softball and baseball. i hope this answered some of your questions, and if you're ever free for one of our matches you should come down and see us.

[Zip Watcher]

I'm down with this. Not into shooting myself .. but I think it's cool to have a few 'non-traditional" sports. It's definitely old-school stuff. Like lacrosse or something. Hope they have a nice season.

[Sloopy]

Who cares about this sport?Answer: No one

[Zipsrifle]

Ahh yes, the annual "Why is Rifle a sport?" conversation. Typically the arguments against this focus on "It isn't physically demanding", "It is dangerous", "I'm a good hunter, so it can't be that hard", and "Who wants to watch this". It is easy for those not acquainted to the sport to downplay it, and I will not try to convince you otherwise. Experience has taught me that until you try it, you have no idea as to the demands required or the allure. To put this in perspective, I would say that car racing is most similar to rifle shooting. Not that many of you know how to handle a car, but I imagine there are quite a few racing fans out there. It doesn’t take a lot of muscle to drive a car, but good drivers need concentration and endurance. People also don’t understand the high level of the competition at the NCAA level. I shot against several Olympians during my days at Akron. I would agree that Rifle is not as physically demanding as other sports. In fact, the point is basically the opposite of all conventional sports in that you want to stay still. Consider this, your heartbeat can be the difference between a 10, and an 8, and this is in the most stable position, prone. Now, stand up for an hour and a half and not move. Physical endurance is very important and learing to keep your body still takes as much practice as making it move fast. I would typically practice anywhere between 12-16 hours a week when I was in school, and that doesn't include 5-6 hour matches on the weekend. The argument that this sport is dangerous is flat out ridiculous and typically the opinion of those who are uninformed or anti-gun. Though I have no real evidence, I would be willing to bet that the percentage of injuries for shooting is the lowest of any NCAA Sport. I hope to be shooting competitively when I am 75 years old, long after most athletes physically can’t compete anymore. Onto the good hunter argument. As I mentioned above, your heartbeat can be the difference between a 10 and an 8. The best shooters on the Zips will shoot an 8 far less than one percent of the time. And when ZR32 said that you need to hit the dot of an “i†from 50 feet away, that literally means the dot on this i with a bullet that would fit INSIDE this O. Oh, no scopes folks, these are open sights so that target 50 feet away is the same size if you’re looking through your sights or not. Finally, I will agree that unless you are acquainted with the sport, it wouldn’t be fun to watch. Like all other sports, you need to have an idea what is going on before you would want to watch. Since nearly everyone reading this hasn’t shot competitively, they don’t know what I’m talking about. I don’t find hockey entertaining, but then again, I don’t know what is going on. All the previous arguments don’t even come close to the most challenging aspect of target shooting, yourself. Did you daydream in school? Have you ever read a book and stopped not knowing what you just read? Well, you just lost the rifle match. Losing your concentration for one shot, out of 120 total, over a 5 hour time span is what the Akron shooters are up against. Mental discipline is by far the hardest aspect of shooting. This is why virtually all the top shooters in college graduate with their degrees. While in school I shot with shooters who are now police officers, nurses, teachers, lawyers, architects, accountants, and many, many engineers. Shooting is primarily a mental activity, and isn’t that why everyone is in school, for your brain? IMO, Rifle shooting complements a college or university beautifully. That is all I have, if you would like to e-mail me with more questions, I would be more than happy to answer your questions. My address is available to anyone who’s registered. Go Zips!

[Sloopy]

Focused activity yes, sport no. This is like driving a car or sweeping (curling). But if Ballroom dancing is an olympic sport, why not shootin a gun.

[zippyrifle32]

ok sloopy then what is your defination of a sport? we have to train physically to be the best like every other sport. we have be mentally tough like you would if you were shooting a free throw with the ncaa tourney on the line. so i guess you calling it not a sport means we have different definitions, but that's ok. like zipsrifle said, unless you came down to see what we do and how we do it then you might not get it. our next match is this weekend in shrank south room 7 against penn state. oh yeah, i think most people are surprised to find out that a lot of rifle teams are all women. that's because it's a cheap team for a university to have to help balance out the title 9 scholarship stuff.zipsrifle - i think you already know this, but they recently changed our course of fire to 60 shots smallbore and 60 shots air. they did that to help cut time and because with the other format if you won smallbore, it really didn't matter if you won air because you would be so many points ahead. plus this year it's an aggregate score that they look at, so you have to be good in both guns.

[Zipsrifle]

Yea, I knew the format changed, it was last year I believe. I was still under the impression that there were a few full course matches (120 shots sb) that you competed in, but that may not be the case. Good luck tomorrow! Remember, the only important shot is the one you are about to take AND DON'T KEEP SCORE IN YOUR HEAD!!!!!!

[zippyrifle32]

Remember, the only important shot is the one you are about to take AND DON'T KEEP SCORE IN YOUR HEAD!!!!!!

that's my biggest problem...