Kaiserslautern rookie shooter Jazmyn Taylor fires at a 10-meter target from a kneeling position for the top score of the match during a high school marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 9, 2017. “I'm sick today so I'm really mellow and my heart rate is down. I think that helped a lot,” Taylor said. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
Kaiserslautern rookie shooter Jazmyn Taylor fires at a 10-meter target from a kneeling position for the top score of the match during a high school marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 9, 2017. “I'm sick today so I'm really mellow and my heart rate is down. I think that helped a lot,” Taylor said. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
High school students from Wiesbaden, Baumholder, Spangdahlem, Kaiserslautern, SHAPE and Alconbury fire at 10-meter targets in the first western conference marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 9, 2017. Kaiserslautern won the match with a team score of 1,102. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
Kaiserslautern’s third-year shooter Victoria Jackson fires in her unique standing position at a 10-meter target during a high school marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 9, 2017. Jackson took second in the match with a combined score of 282-7. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
Mitch Gunnerson from SHAPE fires from a kneeling position at a 10-meter target in his team’s first appearance at a marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 9, 2017. The team from SHAPE just began competing this year (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
Spangdahlem’s Evann Richardson fires at a 10-meter target from a standing position in the first western conference marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 9, 2017. Shooters have 15 minutes to finish firing while in the standing position during the match. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
High school students from Wiesbaden, Baumholder, Spangdahlem, Kaiserslautern, SHAPE and Alconbury fire 10 shots from the prone at 10-meter targets in the first western conference marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 9, 2017. Kaiserslautern won the match with a team score of 1,102. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
Wiesbaden shooter Honor Stackpole fires at a 10-meter target from the prone position during the first western conference high school marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 09, 2017. Stackpole earned third place in the match with a total score of 276. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
Baumholder’s Andrea Santa prepares to fire 10 shots at 10-meter targets in the prone during the first western conference high school marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 09, 2017. Santa earned 87 in the prone, 78 standing and 85 in the kneeling positon for a combined score of 250. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
Wiesbaden’s James Wagenblast steadies in the prone to fire 10 shots at 10-meter targets during the first western conference high school marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 09, 2017. Wagenblast finished in eighth place with a score of 268. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
Shooters from Wiesbaden, Baumholder, Spangdahlem, Kaiserslautern, SHAPE and Alconbury prepare to fire from the prone in the first western conference high school marksmanship match at RAF Alconbury, England, Saturday, December 9, 2017. Kaiserslautern won the match with a team score of 1,102. (William Howard/Stars and Stripes)
RAF ALCONBURY, England — Kaiserslautern proved most precise of the six teams competing Saturday in the second high school marksmanship match of the season. The Raiders won with a team score of 1,102 and fielded the day’s top two shooters in Jazmyn Taylor and Victoria Jackson.
A single bulls-eye separated first and second place as Taylor finished with 282-8 against Jackson’s 282-7.
“I feel really great about it; especially since I’m a first-year shooter,” Taylor said. “I’m sick today, so I’m really mellow and my heart rate is down. I think that helped a lot.”
Wiesbaden’s team earned second place with 1,085 and Alconbury followed close behind for third with 1,061.
For the first time ever, teams from the Western Conference shared a bus ride together to compete at RAF Alconbury.
“It’s the first time we’ve hosted a full conference match in the U.K.,” Alconbury coach John Pardo said.
Students from different teams trained together the night before and even lent a helping hand to the hosting team on match day.
“Even though it’s very competitive, most of the coaches are more than willing to help your team,” Pardo said.
The match also featured a team from SHAPE for the first time in the conference.
“It’s like a family, I’m finding out,” SHAPE coach John Arias said. “They’re so helpful and I can’t thank the other coaches and students enough.”
The young team from SHAPE has to train in a cold gym back home with older rifle models, but freshman Mitch Gunnerson said he doesn’t mind.
“The team is really fun and it’s just a common thing that we can all do,” Gunnerson said. “If we get better with this equipment, then when we get newer stuff we’ll be even better.”
After a day of firing away, five teams left Alconbury for a trip back to the mainland after trading spent pellets for new friendships.
Twitter: @Howard_Stripes
