LEXINGTON, Va. – James Hart won Sunday's air rifle finals at the Southern Conference (SoCon) Championships at VMI, picking up the conference's air rifle individual title and earning SoCon Freshman of the Year. This and the efforts of fellow All-SoCon recipient
Charlotte Welsh guided The Citadel mixed team to a third place finish with 4,572 points, moving one spot up from last year. The women's team took seventh with 4,381 points.
Hart and
Charlotte Welsh both earned First Team honors in smallbore after posting the fourth and sixth best respective marks in Saturday's event, while Hart earned Second Team Air Rifle with his fourth-place finish Sunday to qualify for the finals.
The Bulldogs improved upon their fourth-place finish from last year by earning 2,255 points in smallbore and their 2,317 score in air rifle. The women's team performed by way of a 2,140 smallbore score and 2,241 air rifle mark. Georgia Southern won the team title with a 4,603 aggregate (2,266 smallbore, 2,337 air rifle) with defending champion North Georgia finished second with a 4,594 aggregate (2,254 smallbore, 2,340 air rifle).
How it Happened
- The Bulldogs entered the day in second place after shooting a 2,255 in smallbore on Saturday.
- The Citadel shot a 2,317 in air rifle on Sunday for the third-highest total in the event.
- The score was the third-highest total of the day.
- James Hart led the Bulldogs with a score of 587 to finish fourth.
- Charlotte Welsh shot a 585 for sixth place.
- Cameron Bates had a 577 score for 15th on the leaderboard.
- Jack Wittman rounded out the mixed team scoring with a 568.
- Riley Neiders was the women's team's highest finisher in 17th with 574 points.
- North Georgia had the highest event score with a 2,340, while Georgia Southern had the second most with a 2,337.
Finals
- James Hart and Charlotte Welsh both reached the air rifle finals, with Hart coming out victorious via a 245.3 score, beating out UNG's Jaden-Ann Freser's by 1.8 points. Welsh was seventh with a 136.2 score.
Overall Standings
All-Conference Honors
- James Hart was chosen as the SoCon Freshman of the Year. He finished fifth overall with an aggregate score of 1,156.
- Hart also earned Smallbore First Team and Air Rifle Second Team. He took fourth in the smallbore Saturday with 569 points to advance to the finals, finishing fourth.
- Charlotte Welsh received Smallbore First Team and Air Rifle Second Team. She finishing sixth during Saturday's emallbore with 567 points to advance to the finals, also placing sixth. Welsh finished sixth overall as the Bulldogs' second highest finisher with an aggregate score of 1,152.
- Emily Perkins was tabbed Air Rifle Second Team.
