Memphis Rifle had an early test to start its season, playing host to the defending national champion West Virginia Mountaineers and falling 4745-4718 Saturday.
The Tigers got off to a hot start in the smallbore relay, shooting a program record 2347. Led by junior Katrina Demerle, who shot a career-high 590, and junior Gabriela Zynch, who shot 589, Memphis took it to the visitors quickly but found themselves down by four points headed into the air rifle relay.
In the second discipline, Memphis shot a respectable 2371 as a team but West Virginia set their own records. Junior Griffin Lake shot just the eleventh perfect relay in Mountaineer history, leading his team to a program-high 2394 for the air rifle which secured the preseason favorite the victory.
Individually, the Tigers had four players in the top 10. Demerle placed third (1185 aggregate), Zynch finished fifth (1181), Kenlee Ewton in ninth (1177) and Megan Jaros in tenth (1175). Memphis will look to bounce back when it takes a trip to Columbus to take on No. 12 Ohio State on Saturday.
