Redmond marksmanship team sets its sights on nationals

Published 5:00 am Tuesday, November 1, 2022

The Junior Reserve Officer Corps students focused Oct. 28 as a projector whirred above their heads in a small building at Redmond High School. Clicks filled the room as students loaded their rifles.

“One minute remaining,” said Lt. Col. Doug Seal.

The students peered through their scopes, checking last minute details before they started the competition against Franklin Parish, a high school in Louisiana. The range went hot and students began firing their air rifles in a burst of clacks, small metal pellets striking the paper targets downrange.

“Take your time. Focus. Relax,” said Seal.

Eyes closed. Breath in. Breath out. Look through sights. Breath in. Breath out. Hold. Aim. Click.

This scene plays out every week for the Redmond High School Marine Corps JROTC marksmanship team as they compete against other schools across the country, all chasing the national championship in the Orion National Air Rifle League.

RHS is currently ranked in sixth place in the Elite Division and first place in the Marine Corps JROTC Conference.

The league is based off Olympic rifle competitions and has students compete in three positions: prone, standing and kneeling. Sheets downrange are set up with 12 targets of nine concentric circles. The students earn more points the closer a shot lands to the center.

Sheets from each position are collected and input into the computer system by Andres Saldana, a junior at RHS and the team’s statistical officer. The competing school anywhere else in the United States follows the same process.

The scores of the top four shooters from each school are combined for the final score. The top four at Friday’s competition were Simeon Lovric (265.6), Aidan Waterman (264.6), Dolores “Deedee” Lopez (263.1) and Callan McNee (246.9).

“It’s a concentration sport,” Saldana said. “How you win is by the decimal.”

Lt. Col. Doug Seal, a JRTOC instructor and coach of the marksmanship team, said the sport is a great way for students to learn how to relax and focus, block out distractions and control their minds. The slightest shift or break in concentration can sway a pellet’s trajectory off course.

“(It) really develops a sense of discipline,” said Seal.

Each competitor has a journal where they write down what they did well and what they need to work on, Seal said. The journal is how they get better. While he can coach them, they have to examine the little things themselves. Through journaling, they’re able to examine the small tweaks and errors — maybe their breathing was off or their concentration broke.

“You can always be better,” said Simeon Lovric, the top shooter in Friday’s competition.

“What happens, happens,” said Alana Hatch, a freshman who competed for the first time on Friday. “Honestly at the end of the day it’s all feedback, more so than not doing well. It’s knowing how to do better next time.”

According to Gavvin McLaren, a sophomore at RHS who started marksmanship last year, it can be difficult to prepare for competition. He said much of the sport is training your mental foundation to just focus on what you’re doing.

“The smallest sound can completely mess you up,” he said. “The smallest air change can make you completely think differently.”

The rifle is an equalizing force, Seal said. Prepped correctly, it is entirely in the hands of the marksman, no matter their gender, height or build. Once students learn this accountability, Seal said their performance goes up.

“It’s immediate feedback,” Seal said. “It’s all you.”

Additionally, Seal emphasized the importance of nutrition. Drinking caffeine before a competition, for instance, can lead to jittery hands and an unstable shot.

“All we want you to do is get what you’re capable of and do your best,” Seal told the team after the competition. “Nothing beats that feeling when you’ve done your best and you see the result.”

To qualify for nationals, the team has to hit a score of 1050 for the top four shooters. RHS crushed Franklin Parish’s 775.7 score, but was just shy from qualifying for nationals with a final score of 1040.2.

All students have to pass a firearm safety test with 100 percent and get parent signoffs before they can even touch a rifle, Seal said.

Their next competition is Nov. 5 in Lebanon, for an in-person event.