UAF grad qualifies for third U.S. Olympic shooting team

Submitted by Scott Wilson
Phone: (907) 474-6807
06/02/04

When the United States Olympic Shooting Team heads to Athens, Greece in August for the 2004 Olympic Games, the team will have a true Alaskan flavor.

Former University of Alaska Fairbanks rifle standout Matt Emmons became the first United States athlete to ever qualify for three Olympic teams when he won the Men’s 50-Meter 3-Position competition earlier this week at the 2004 U.S. Olympic team trials at the Pool Ranges at Fort Benning, GA. Emmons had already qualified for the Olympic air rifle and prone teams.

"That was my goal," Emmons said in a press release issued by USA Shooting. "I have been training really hard and knew that I could shoot good scores in all three events."

Emmons, a 2003 UAF graduate who led the Nanooks to four consecutive NCAA National Championships, shot well throughout the trials. He posted a commanding 3717.1 in the 50-meter competition, outdistancing Michael Anti (3686.3) in second place. Current UAF sophomore Matt Rawlings finished third with a 3683.1.

Matt Wallace, a senior on the current Nanook championship squad, finished sixth in the individual standings. Former UAF shooter Daniel Jordan was 15th, one spot ahead of current Nanook shooter Joe Hein. Former UAF Nanook Grant Mecozzi finished in 30th place with Ryan Baum, a junior, finishing 34th overall.

Earlier in the competition, Emmons qualified for the Men’s 10-Meter Air Rifle Team by finishing second to Jason Parker. Parker shot 1989.0, while Emmons posted a score of 1985.0. However, he followed that by winning the Men’s 50-Meter Prone competition with a score of 1999.2, just ahead of Anti, who shot 1996.6.

The Olympic Trials proved to be a good learning tool for the current Nanooks. Rawlings finished fifth in the air rifle competition and 33rd in the prone contest. Hein took seventh overall in the air rifle and 19th in the prone. Wallace finished 21st and 37th, respectively, while Baum took 25th in the air rifle shoot and 54th in the prone competition.

Current UAF shooter Jamie Beyerle fared well in the women’s competition. The sophomore from Lebanon, PA, finished sixth overall in both the Women’s 10-Meter Air Rifle and the Women’s 50-Meter 3-Position competitions. Former UAF shooter Amber Darland was third in the 3-position shooting and ninth in the air rifle. UAF alum Melissa Mulloy-Mecozzi was fifth in the 3-position and seventh in the air rifle competition.

Contact: Scott Wilson, UAF Sports Information Office at (907) 474-6807 or fnsaw@uaf.edu