Seniors rally Ridgeland to first state rifle finals
The GHSA state riflery tournament is set up so the two highest-scoring teams in the semi-finals that did not win their matches can still make the field as wild cards.
It’s a nice cushion to be able to fall back on, and it’s one that the Ridgeland Panthers won’t need.
Trailing by six points headed into the final round (kneeling) of shooting, Ridgeland’s two seniors put the team on their backs and pulled the Panthers through to their first-ever trip to the state finals.
Kayla Brewer posted a 97 and team captain Mackenzie Hunter scored a perfect 100 to lift Ridgeland to a 1,1191,104 come-from-behind victory over North Paulding at the Carl Gentry Rifle Range at Ridgeland High School on Thursday.
Hunter said she was getting increasingly nervous with every shot in the final round, especially with the added difficulty shooting in the kneeling position.
“My heart was beating so fast, I thought I was going to shoot a 7, especially on that last one,” Hunter recalled, following a word of congratulations from her opponents and round of hugs from her teammates. “I was so scared. I kept looking at my screen and after every 10 that I shot, my heartbeat was just getting faster and faster. I was trying to calm down, but it wasn’t working.
“But I’m really excited, really happy and really proud. We’ve all worked so hard for it. I just can’t believe we actually did it.”
“It just feels amazing,” Brewer added. “That was an experience. We were all on put on edge for a second, but it really feels good.”
A tight first round saw the visiting Wolfpack, the Area 7 runner-up, forge a narrow 387-385 lead after shots in the prone position, and they increased their lead to 741-735 after the standing round.
However, the Panthers were determined to not let it slip away and came up huge when they had to have it the most.
Hunter, who also posted a 97 in prone and a 96 in standing, finished with a total of 293, which is one point off of her season-best score.
Elizabeth Quarles (9692-93) finished with a 281. Brewer (97-80-97) posted a 274, while Ashlynn Hill (91-86-94) ended up at 271 to round out the team total.
Madeline Moore (95-7893) posted a 266 for Ridgeland, while Joash Williams (94-76-89) finished at 259.
Ella Crumbley led North Paulding with a score of 280, while the other three scores fell between 272 and 279.
“We were down, but they got serious about it,” Gentry said of his team in the final round. “They just let their training come into play. This is a wonderful feeling. These kids have worked so hard. We practice from August on, so we practice a lot more than most teams do and it really paid off. They put their heart and soul into it.”
The Area 10 champions will head to Georgia Southern University in Statesboro for the GHSA state finals on April 22-23.