CHULA VISTA, Calif. – The Lindsey Wilson archery team turned in a fourth-place finish at the USA Archery Outdoor National Championship over the weekend at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center.
Two Lindsey Wilson teams claimed titles at the event while four teams and one individual claimed spots on the podium in their respective disciplines. The Blue Raiders finished the event with 53 team points and 13 individual points totaling 66 points for the event.
Evan Mahanna, Taylor Bell, and Aunika Selch collected All-American Team honor based on their results at both the indoor and outdoor championships. The trio all earned the honor in the fixed pin discipline with the Mahanna and Bell doing so on the men's side and Selch on the women's. Mahanna and Bell finished with the third and eighth-best scores in the country as Selch took fifth.
The women's barebow pairing of Chondani McKenna-Vega, Sarah McCarthy, and Britney McCarthy took gold in the team event, winning three straight matches. The trio opened with a 6-2 win over a familiar foe in Mid-South Conference member Pikeville (Ky.) and then took down the University of California on a 5-4 result in the semifinals. The Blue Raiders rolled in the finals to a 6-2 win over MSC member Cumberlands. The pairing won 40-35, 41-32, 34-43, and 41-29 to claim the title.
Lindsey Wilson teams then claimed podium finishes during the fixed pins event with the men claiming first place and the women taking second.
Taylor Bell, Wyatt Burtts, and Mahanna rolled to three straight victories after opening with a 217-187 win over Pennsylvania College. The trio then downed a James Madison team 221-204 in the semifinals. Bell, Burtts, and Mahanna claimed their title by four points in the finals over Texas A&M after outscoring the Aggies 53-53, 54-45, 55-57, 56-59.
Alexis Abbott, Jessica Heady, and Aunika Selch received a bye to the semifinals where they advanced to the championship via a shoot-off against Pikeville after finishing tied at 209. The trio fell in the finals to Cumberlands 218-210 to claim second place.
Madison Hart and Austin Taylor joined forces in the mixed team compound to earn the Blue Raiders final team podium finish of the championship. The duo opened with a close 142-141 win over the University of California before rolling to a 154-144 win in the quarterfinals over William Carey. Hart and Taylor picked up their biggest win of the day on a 150-138 result over Pikeville in the semifinals before falling 147-140 in the finals to Cumberlands.
Mahanna finished in third place during men's fixed pins. He opened with a 140-126 win over Louie Wiess before downing Bryden Mollenauer on a 141-132 result. He picked up his third win of the afternoon in the semifinals on a 140-134 result over Coby Hudson but then fell in the semifinals to Chase Herdon 142-133. He bounced back with a 138-134 result over JP Gonzales to claim third.
Selch advanced into podium contention in the women's fixed pins but ultimately finished in fourth place. She opened her run with two wins over Lindsey Wilson teammates, winning 135-125 over Bailey Elam and 144-130 against Alexis Abbott. She then won 136-131 in the quarterfinals over Kaitlyn Shields before falling to Madison Cox on a tight 132-131 result. She also dropped the third-place match on a 142-135 score to Kimber Wheeler.
Cumberlands took home the team title with 147 points as Texas A&M finished second with 130 points. Pikeville finished just ahead of the Blue Raiders in third with 84 points.
The completion of the event ends the Lindsey Wilson archery season for the 2021-22 academic year.
