The Skyhawk rifle squad is set to resume their 2019-20 season with the opening of their spring slate Jan. 11 against the Murray State Racers (MSU).
UTM’s first matchup of the spring will be a tale of two very different squads. The Skyhawks haven’t had a very successful start to their 2019-20 campaign, going 1-6 since the start of the season in September.
Against non-Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) teams, Memphis and Ole Miss, the Skyhawks failed to keep pace with their opponents, lagging behind their opponents’ aggregate score by an average of 68 points.
MSU, Morehead State and Jacksonville State (JSU) were UTM’s OVC matchups of the Fall slate, with a joint match against MSU and JSU Oct. 6 (loss, UTM aggregate of 4,593) and three matchups against Morehead State.
The Skyhawks went 1-2 against Morehead State, with their sole win coming in the third matchup. UTM managed to defeat the Eagles with their fourth-lowest aggregate score of the fall (4,599). The highest Skyhawk aggregate came in their second matchup against Morehead State, which was a 4,645-4,622 loss.
The Racers, on the other hand, have had a successful start to their 2019-20 campaign with a 5-3 record. MSU has gone undefeated in OVC matchups this season, defeating JSU, UTM and Morehead State. Big Ten conference school Ohio State couldn’t defeat a solid Racers squad, though Kentucky and Texas Christian University (TCU) gave MSU their three losses.
The Skyhawks haven’t defeated the Racers since 2013.
UTM’s trio comprised of senior Kaitlin Korinek, junior Jennifer Plocinik and sophomore Rachel Sprague have kept the Skyhawks competitive in most matchups. These three commonly rank in the overall top-10 in their matchups.
After their Jan. 11 match against the Racers, the Skyhawks will take on the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Jan. 25 and JSU Jan. 26, which will be the same day as the Withrow Invitational in Murray. All three matchups will take place at the Skyhawk Rifle Range.
The OVC Championship will also take place in Martin Feb. 8-9.
