The Nevada Sagebrush

Nevada shooters take aim during the Wolf Pack’s competition against the University of Texas at El Paso

The Nevada rifle team watched as two seniors fired their last shots at home over the weekend.

Andrew Hickey and Sarah Smith, who have been on the rifle team since 2005, finished their final home match Sunday afternoon against a tough University of Texas at El Paso rifle team. Rifle head coach Fred Harvey was pleased with both seniors’ final efforts.

“Andy shot very well, leading the team in small bore and again very well on air rifle. Sarah was an All-American last year, so she has the skill to shoot great even with her back injury.”

No. 10 UTEP defeated No. 7 Nevada 4592-4509 in the team’s first match back from winter break. The Miners won by nine points in the fourth match between the two schools Saturday and Sunday. The face-off served more as a practice match for each team, as they both had only practiced once since winter break.

Despite the loss, Nevada remained optimistic.

“There are still a couple of weeks before qualifiers, we will be a lot better before then,”junior Heather Horn said.

The two teams seemed almost evenly matched throughout the relays, trading shots almost regularly. Strong performances from Dempster Christenson and Jessica Klatt made the match exciting and to close to call. Even from a coaches stand point it was hard to tell who the clear winner was before the numbers were tallied up.

“I am very pleased with everyone’s performance. It really was a nail biter; I thought we were going to win,”Harvey said.

The difference maker though was Alix Moncaca for UTEP. The Mexican Olympic athlete led the Miners on both small bore and air rifle with 570 and 587. Moncada, who just joined the team less than two weeks ago, was able to pull through in the clutch, shooting with high accuracy and consistency.

Harvey knew about Moncaca’s skill going into the match.

“I had heard rumors about her and she met all of them,”he said. “She is only a freshman and is already All-American material.”

As the final match on Sunday started, a crowd of Nevada supporters came in from the snow to fill the range and cheer on the two seniors. When the final shots hit their targets, applause broke out for the home team.

“It was really great to see the crowd come out support our shooters,”Harvey said.

Hickey and Smith hope to lead the team past UTEP for their fifth and final matchup on February 14th where both teams will be competing to qualify for the NCAA Championships.

Garrett Estrada can be reached at sports@nevadasagebrush.com.

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