Butler rifle aiming high
BUTLER TWP — Make no mistake. Butler’s varsity rifle team is shooting for glory.
The Golden Tornado, coming off a second-place finish at the WPIAL Team Championships last week at the Dormont-Mt. Lebanon Sportsman’s Club, return to that same site Monday for the state championships.
“I believe we’re going to win,” Butler sophomore Nate Aaron said. “We’ve got really good shooters and we only missed winning the WPIAL (team title) by 5X. We’ve got a good shot at this.”
Aaron joined Tornado seniors Brianna Bell and Hannah Beacon, along with sophomore Hailey Gorog, in making the WPIAL All-Tournament team. Butler shot an 800-59 at the team championship, trailing only Hempfield (800.64). The Spartans claimed the team championship for the fourth time in five seasons.
Their lone miss was in 2020, when Butler won its first WPIAL rifle title since 1988. The Tornado finished seventh at the WPIAL match last year.
Eric Beveridge has been Butler’s coach since 2002. Matthew Hutchinson has been an assistant coach for 15 seasons. They guided the Tornado to an 8-2 record and Section 4 championship this season. The team’s lone losses were non-section matches against Penn-Trafford and Mt. Lebanon.
“We had 33 kids come out for the team this season and we kept all 33,” Hutchinson said. “Eric has a tough time every match, asking himself, ‘Did I make the right choice? Am I using the right shooters?’ There’s a lot of talent on this team.”
During the WPIAL Individual Championships Thursday, Bell narrowly missed winning the crown. She shot a 200 with 18x and four centers. Champion Riley Dunn of McGuffey shot 200, 19x with three centers.
Bell is in her first year with the varsity. She joined the team her sophomore year.
Bell placed second at the WPIAL Individual Championships, shooting a 200 with 18x and four centers. Champion Riley Dunn of McGuffey shot a 200, 19x and three centers.
“That was totally unexpected,” Bell said of her performance. “It was the best I’ve shot all season. I’m definitely proud of that performance.”
Bell decided to try rifle after basketball didn’t work out her freshman year.
“A lot goes into this,” she said of rifle. “It’s all about accuracy, but your breathing, positioning, trigger pull, all of that plays into it.”
Teammate Hannah Beacon, also a senior, placed third at the WPIAL Individuals with a 200, 17x and eight centers. Her eight centers were most of any of the 80 shooters in the competition.
“I’ve been with the team for four years,” Beacon said. “I was always interested in the sport. My (older) brother, D.J., was on the team, so I’ve always known about it.
“This is all about focus. So much of this sport is mental.”
Beacon added that there are no rivalries among the Tornado shooters.
“We’re a team and we support each other,” she said.
While rifle is not a high-profile high school sport, Aaron said the team is proud of its accomplishments.
“We feel we're performing as well as any sport in the school,” he said.
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