Stuttgart?s Eileen Dickinson ended the 2016 DODDS-Europe marksmanship fourth overall with a 280 during the 2016 DODEA-Europe marksmanship finals held in Vilseck, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016. (Michael S. Darnell/Stars and Stripes)
Stuttgart?s Eileen Dickinson ended the 2016 DODDS-Europe marksmanship fourth overall with a 280 during the 2016 DODEA-Europe marksmanship finals held in Vilseck, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016. (Michael S. Darnell/Stars and Stripes)
Callum Funk, one of Stuttgart?s best marksmen and the only male to make the top six, checks the placement of his shot during the 2016 DODEA-Europe marksmanship finals held in Vilseck, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016. (Michael S. Darnell/Stars and Stripes)
The Stuttgart Panthers approach each new marksmanship season, and in fact each successive meet, with the same mantra.
“Nothing but tens,” coach Raul Pinon said.
They don’t always meet this lofty standard, but the determined pursuit of it has made the Panthers the dominant presence in DODEA-Europe marksmanship in recent years. Stuttgart won its third straight European team championship last winter. On Saturday, at the first of the six weekend competitions that will comprise the 2016-17 DODEA-Europe marksmanship season, the Panthers will begin to chase a fourth.
Stuttgart has lost some of the key shooters largely responsible for last year’s 49-point team victory over runner-up Vilseck. But the Panthers boast an unparalleled feeder system funneling talent into their top six. Pinon reports 23 shooters in a program headlined by returning juniors Eileen Dickinson, Callum Funk, Macy Kimball and Fallon Dickinson, all of whom cracked the individual top 20 at last year’s championship meet.
That mix of depth and elite talent creates a practice atmosphere that rivals any of the live competition the Panthers encounter at meets.
“Every day they compete for that spot on the varsity team,” Pinon said.
It’s not easy for an opposing team to test Stuttgart’s shooters harder than they test each other. But there are 10 programs eager to try, ranging from established former champions to first-year upstarts and various developmental points in between.
SHAPE is the new addition to the ranks. Coach John Arias and his fledgling program are preoccupied with logistical issues at this early date in the process; title contention will have to wait until those key details are worked out.
“We still have a lot of hurdles to overcome, from equipment to range issues,” Arias said. “We are just getting the program up and running and adhering to all the safety standards.”
While SHAPE looks to the future, Kaiserslautern and Wiesbaden are ready to take the next step this season after finishing third and fourth, respectively, at last year’s finals. Junior captain Victoria Jackson leads a group of four returning shooters for the Raiders.
Kaiserslautern will try to hold off Wiesbaden, Bitburg, SHAPE, Baumholder and Alconbury for supremacy in the western conference. Alconbury has three veteran shooters looking to continue the program’s momentum in the absence of 2015-16 individual European champion Brittany Brann.
Vilseck, last year’s runner-up, will now see Stuttgart on a weekly basis as the Panthers shift from the western conference to the east. The Falcons have the numbers to keep pace with the rival Panthers; their roster includes nine returnees among 18 total shooters, including Mikaela Motherwell, who finished seventh in Europe as a freshman. Ansbach, Hohenfels and Vicenza round out the eastern ranks.
The regular season spans Dec. 3 and 10 before the holiday break and Jan. 7, 14 and 21 on the other side. Vilseck is scheduled to host the European championship meet Jan. 28.
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