Last Saturday’s 2019-2020 GISA State Archery Meet will go down in history.
The Varsity Archery Team took our top archers to the 2nd Annual GISA State Archery Meet in Statesboro, GA on Saturday, January 25th. The weather had been very mild this season up until these past two weeks. The cold weather contributed to some shaky practices, and David and Amanda did not know how their archers would do. However, their fears were soon soothed when the archers took to the shooting line.
The State Archery meet entails two full-length tournaments in a single day, one Bull’s eye tournament followed by a 3D Tournament, where archers aim at foam animals.
First up was the Bull’s eye Tourney. Right off the bat, Brady Schaeffer displayed his excellent focus and skill by shooting a 271, not only his personal best by over 20 points, but also the new school record. Charles Young, calm and collected, shot a perfect scoring end from 10m, hitting 5 bull’s eyes back-to-back. This is the second TCS archer to ever shoot a perfect scoring end, and the first to do so in competition. Charles went on to shoot a 253. Gabe Cronin had a very strong showing as well, shooting a 250. Gabe impressed his coaches with his maturity and collaborative spirit throughout the tournament. Charlie Kish, 8th grade phenom upped his personal record and shot a 246, unheard of for a first-year archer. Mike Janyska shot a personal record of 232, shooting better at State than any day of practice this season. Way to pull it together when it counts most! Adam Tepper shot a 239. State can be awfully nerve-wracking, especially when shooting against the best-of-the-best. Coaches are proud that Adam kept his cool and pulled off a great score. Allie Sisk shot a 217, upping her personal record by over 30 points. Excellent for another first-year archer. While Natalie Mortimer and Grace Marriott struggled under pressure, the still pulled off scores of 185 and 163 respectively.
After lunch, the archers shot another full-length tournament, this time aiming at 3D animal targets. 3D Archery is just starting to catch on in Georgia, and there are not many opportunities to practice this facet of the sport. This was only the second true 3D tournament the team has ever shot. One at last years’ State Tourney, and one this year. Brady Schaeffer shot a 236, improving his score 30 points since last year. In his first ever 3D Tournament, Charles Young bested Brady by a single point, shooting a 237. Gabe Cronin, tried and true, earned the team’s highest ever score in 3D with a 240 setting a new school record for 3D. Charlie Kish, Charlie Kish, Charlie Kish. Charlie shot a 238 in 3D in his first 3D tournament, first year as an archer, and as an 8th grader. Charlie’s 238 in 3D is the second highest in school history. Tired from the morning’s shooting, Adam Tepper shot a 208. It was not his best, but it was 50 points higher than last year! Mike Janyska was just as focused in 3D as he was in the morning. He stepped up to the line with his new form and again killed it! (The deer, the turkey, the big horn sheep, the bear…) Mike improved his score 40 points shooting a 230. Allie Sisk had some trouble finding her aim for the closest critters, but kept her cool and didn’t stop smiling away. Natalie had a good first 3D tournament, but was fatigued from the morning session. We are looking forward to building up some endurance for next year. Grace Marriott was able to hear some feedback from her coaches and hit the farthest target. Her score improved 30 points from last year.
The coaches are incredibly proud of the hard work these archers and the whole team has put in this year. The TCS Varsity Archery team placed 4th out of 6 schools, but they get closer to edging out the 3rd place competitors each year. On average, the archers that attended State improved their total score 47 points each this season.
The team is looking forward to the Archery Showcase on Saturday, February 1st at the TCS archery range from 11am – 1pm. Come early for Homecoming and celebrate with the team!