Twindly Bridge Charter School student air rifle team shoots their way to second place at national championships

The Student Air Rifle program (SAR) team from Twindly Bridge Charter School (TBCS) placed second at the SAR National Championships in Festus, Missouri on October 26. Senior Xaden Kaiser placed first in his division and for all boys in the tournament, earning him the “Top Shot” award. SAR team coach for TBCS Christa Dooley was confident in her team but was surprised to place as highly as they did.

“Though we thought we'd do well, we didn't actually expect to win second place as a team,” Dooley said.

This was only the second year that TBCS has participated in the SAR program. TBCS was involved with the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) and adopted the SAR program after coaches received training last year. Dooley said that most of the students that are on the rifle team started on the archery team. Glacierview and Kenny Lake are the only other schools to offer this program in the state, Dooley said.

The team at TBCS received an invite from SAR Program CEO Jake Hindman to participate at nationals this year. They were one of twelve schools that attended, according to Dooley. The team from TBCS took 12 students; three girls and nine boys.

Kaiser tied for first place with a score of 285. He won overall by shooting 20 bullseyes, one more than second place, according to Dooley. A perfect score is 300 points.

“I got first place,” Kaiser said. “It was a very close game.”

TBCS placed second in their division with a combined score of 1629. The first-place team from Howe, Oklahoma scored 1663 points. Xoran Kaiser, Xaden Kaiser’s brother, placed fourth overall for the boys with a score of 282. Team member Isabella Page placed fourth overall for the girls with a score of 270.

Students shoot the Umarex Embark .177 caliber air rifle from the standing position at a card of targets from 10 meters away. Each card has five targets and each target is shot at twice. Any shot has the possibility of being worth 10 points. A perfect card would be 10 perfect shots worth 100 points. Each student shoots at three total cards, for a total of 30 shots and a possibility of 300 points.

The team from TBCS is still organizing a formal event to celebrate their success at nationals. They held a small celebration in the town where the championships took place. Students at TBCS were celebrating the team when they arrived back at school.

“We went to Steak ‘n Shake for milkshakes and hamburgers to celebrate immediately after,” Dooley said. “Because it's a small school, and most of the team is here at the school today, they're still talking about it. And everybody at the school is really proud of them.”

Students made new friends and connections with team members from other schools at the event, Dooley said. The students were able to take more away from the trip than just competing.

“It was a really great bonding experience for the team,” Dooley said. “They went to an area that most of them had never been, and even though they competed as individuals, they did a really great job of supporting each other and the other teams at the competition.”

Dooley acknowledged how hard the team has worked and the benefits they have received from participating in this program.

“The kids have worked really hard and have grown a lot since first starting the program,” Dooley said. “The SAR program incorporates effective decision making, accountability, respect, enthusiastic contribution, teamwork, integrity and honesty to help the students reach their full potential.”

Kaiser is now preparing to participate at the NASP national championships, where he qualified for the world championships last year. Although he placed first at the SAR national championships, he remains humble going into his next competition.

“I'm really proud of myself, I really did not expect it to happen,” Kaiser said. “You can always improve your shooting.”