Churchill ROTC team second at national competition

The Churchill County High School Navy Junior ROTC Air Rifle team recently finished second at the Daviess County Annual Panther Air Rifle Sporter Postal Competition.

The Churchill team consisted of cadets Aspen Easter, Chris Elder, Bryce Lockett and Matt Manzon.

The Postal competition, hosted by the Daviess County High School NJROTC, in Owensboro, Kentucky, consisted of 16 air rifle teams from throughout the United States.

Postal competitions allow JROTC air rifle teams to compete nationwide without leaving their own high school. The contests are conducted under the rules of the 10 meter National Standard Three Position Air Rifle Rules, and is modeled after Olympic style shooting. The course of fire is certified by the Naval Science Instructor and the targets are mailed to the host school for scoring.

Targets are shot on a 10 meter measured range from the prone, standing and kneeling positions under timed conditions. The .177 air rifles must meet certain criteria regarding, weight, muzzle velocity, trigger weight, and cost. In the sporter class, the rifles are pre-charged pneumatics with a cost limit of $525, a muzzle velocity of 600 feet per second, a weight of less then 7.5 pounds, and a minimum trigger pull of 1.5 pounds.

The Churchill County NJROTC team has competed in 12 nationwide competitions this season.