University of Kentucky freshman Mary Tucker has been named the Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association Shooter and Freshman Shooter of the Year while her teammates, junior Hailee Sigmon and sophomores Will Shaner, Ruby Gomes and Richard Clark have all earned All-America honors.
The CRCA named Tucker and Shaner first-team All-America honorees overall. Tucker was also named a first-team Collegiate All-America honoree in smallbore and air rifle while Sigmon was tabbed a second-team Collegiate All-America honoree in air rifle and smallbore. Gomes was a second-team Collegiate All-American in air rifle while Clark was honorable mention Collegiate All-American in air rifle.
“I am very excited for our five All-America honorees who worked very hard all season,” UK head coach Harry Mullins said. “It is always great to see your student-athletes get rewarded for their hard work and this group really deserves every honor they receive. Mary getting shooter of the year and freshman of the year from the CRCA is a huge accomplishment. I think this group has done a great job this season and I am very proud of them and what they were able to achieve.”
Tucker had a great rookie season for the Wildcats, averaging a 590.692 in smallbore and 597.846 in air rifle for a 1188.538 aggregate. The native of Sarasota, Florida, was one of three shooters in the NCAA this season to post a smallbore score of 593 or above, while she also had the top score in the discipline at 595. Tucker was just as impressive in air rifle as one of four in the NCAA to score a 599 or better, earning that score an impressive four times this season. She was also a first-team All-Great American Rifle Conference performer in smallbore, air rifle and combined. There was nine individual aggregate scores in the NCAA this season at 1190 or above with Tucker earning seven of those scores.
The other two individual aggregate scores of 1190 or above this season belonged to Shaner, earning the sophomore first-team All-GARC honors in smallbore, air rifle and combined for the second-straight season. The native of Colorado Springs, Colorado, averaged a 587.667 in smallbore and 595.833 in air rifle for an aggregate average of 1183.500. Shaner’s best smallbore score of the season was a 594 back in November, which tied the second-best mark in the nation this season, while he also scored a 593 and two 591s in the discipline. In air rifle, Shaner was one of four athletes in the NCAA with a 599, earning the high mark in the WVU Rifle Range earlier this month and in the GARC Championships while he also had four 597s to his name this season.
Gomes is a two-time All-GARC Second Team honoree in air rifle after averaging 589.538 in the discipline. At Army on Jan. 19, Gomes recorded a personal-best in the event, scoring a 598. The native of Portsmouth, Rhode Island scored a 595 or better four times this season, including back-to-back matches with a 596 at WVU and a 595 in the NCAA Qualifier. The sophomore ended the season strong, scoring her season-high aggregate score of 1193 in two of the last three matches.
Sigmon put together a strong junior campaign after missing the first half of the campaign with an injury. The native of Kiowa, Colorado, averaged 579.875 in smallbore, 591.778 in air rifle and an aggregate of 1171.653. Her best performance of the season came in the NCAA qualifier when she posted a season-best 586 in smallbore and 598 in air rifle for a season-high aggregate of 1184.
Clark was a consistent presence for the Wildcats this season averaging 578.077 in smallbore, 589.538 in air rifle and 1167.615 aggregate. Clark’s season-high smallbore score was 585, which he earned twice this season – once at Army in January and the second time in the NCAA Qualifier in Lexington. The native of Jackson, Michigan, posted five scores of 590 or better in air rifle, including season-highs 595s in his first two matches of the year in October.
For the latest on the Kentucky rifle team, follow @UKRifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, as well as on the web at UKathletics.com.
‑ GO CATS –
For more information contact:
Evan Crane