The Ole Miss rifle team has punched its fifth straight ticket to the NCAA Rifle Championship.
Per a release from the university’s athletics department, the Rebels (10-6, 1-3 PRC) secured a 4736.3 average among their four counted scores, consisting of their three best from three different locations and last weekend’s NCAA Qualifier. That score was good enough to give them the No. 5 seed, one spot above last season’s placement.
The team will compete on the biggest stage in the sport, looking to grab a national title from March 14-15 at Kentucky’s Memorial Coliseum in Lexington.
The Rebels are entering the tournament with momentum on their side, after besting Memphis in the NCAA Qualifier, 4734-4709. The win gave Ole Miss 10 victories on the year, becoming the third Rebel squad to reach double-digit wins in the regular season. It’s the first time Ole Miss has reached the 10-win plateau since 2021-22.
Audrey Gogniat has led Ole Miss during the spring half of the season, pacing the NCAA in both smallbore and air rifle averages. She averages 592.0 in smallbore and 598.8 in air rifle for an 1190.8 aggregate. The Swiss native has achieved 1190-plus scores in four appearances this spring.
Freshman Gracie Dinh and veteran Lea Horvath support Gogniat as the team’s No. 2 and No. 3 scoring members. Horvath opened her final season as a Rebel with a bang in the opening weekend of competition, firing her fourth career-perfect 600 in air rifle against Murray State.
Joining the Rebels in the championship series are Air Force, Alaska Fairbanks, Georgia Southern, Kentucky, Murray State, TCU, and West Virginia.