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| The shooters will host 6 teams from Va., W.Va. and N.C. |
Courtesy Photo:
Franklin County High School JROTC students stand behind numerous trophies they won at a recent marksmanship match in Bedford. |
Friday, February 8, 2013
By STACEY HAIRSTON - Staff Writer
The Franklin County High School Air Force Junior ROTC marksmanship team will host a competition at the Rocky Mount Armory on Feb. 7, 8 and 9.
The competition will be held Thursday and Friday from 5 to 8 p.m. and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
"This is our third year of competing and the first year this competition has been held locally," said Lt. Col. Tracey Carter (Ret.), the team's head coach.
Six teams traveling from Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina will be in town Saturday to participate in the competition, which is open to the public.
Spectators are encouraged to bring binoculars to the event to help with the viewing of targets.
The U.S. Air Force National Marksmanship competition is scheduled for Feb. 14 - 16 in Anniston, Ala.
"We have three teams, containing 13 marksmen, that qualified for the nationals," said Carter.
The first team is the favorite to win the championship, Carter said.
The second team is ranked 8th in the Air Force, and the third team ranked in the top 20, he added.
Last year, one Franklin County team qualified for the national competition and finished 16th in the nation, Carter said. And all three teams this year are shooting better than last year's team.
"We have the number one ranked shooter in the Air Force, and four of our shooters have broken the Air Force record in practice during the last few weeks," said Carter.
Qualifying team members include Cody Ashby, Tyler Phaup, Michael Barton, Brantley Santrock, Jonathan Gove, Mattie Green, Dwayne Goad, Brandon Perdue, Sierra Czap, Sydney Brown, Christopher Cesternino, Sydney Wood and Brittany Carter.
New to the team and also shooting in this weekend's competition are Ian Hamrick, Ben Minnix and Chelsae Adams.
Participants in U.S. Air Force National Marksmanship competition will shoot at an Olympic range. The match can be viewed live online at http://www.odcmp.com.
One Franklin County team will also be shooting at the All-Service Nationals in March and is ranked in the top 10 this year.
"We have a good shot at winning the National Championship," said Carter.
The All-Service Nationals will also include teams from the Army, Navy and Marines. |
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