Feb. 13, 2006

WEST POINT, N.Y. - Sophomore Chris Abalo was selected the Army Athletic Association's "Athlete of the Week" after leading the rifle team to a school record 4693 points at the NCAA Qualifier over the weekend. The Army rifleman, who earned that honor for the first time this season and fourth in his career, tied his school mark in air rifle and equaled his personal best in smallbore.

The Black Knights, the reigning NCAA rifle champions, fired a pair of school records at their NCAA Qualifier and NRA Sectionals hosted by the University of the Sciences at the Colonel William Shea Rifle Range Friday evening. Abalo set the pace for Army's record-setting smallbore team that fired a 2346, and led the air rifle unit that tied its season-high 2347 en route to a combined 4693 aggregate. Army's combined score shattered its former mark, set at last year's Qualifier, by 11 points.

Abalo, who set a career-high 1188 aggregate, came into the meet with a 589 average in smallbore and 587 mark in air rifle. He tied his school air rifle record of 594, set at last year's Great America Rifle Conference Championship meet, while equaling his smallbore score of 594, set in the first match of the season, which is two points shy of the school record.

The Glendora, Calif., native, a 2005 first-team air rifle and smallbore All-American, has a good chance of once again qualifying individually for the NCAAs, where he finished fourth in both disciplines at last year's championships.

The Black Knights' 4693 team score ranks among the top marks shot this weekend as every Division I school was firing its NCAA Qualifier at various sites throughout the country. Nebraska, one of the teams Army (8-2) suffered a defeat to this year, shot a 4666 at its Qualifier.

The eight teams who qualify this year will contend for the 2006 title as well as vie for the smallbore and air rifle crown. However, there is an addendum to air rifle for schools that just fire that discipline. If an air rifle-only school posts a higher score than one of the eight qualifying teams, they will take that team's spot in that discipline, which in turn would cut the field to seven that could vie for the team title.

The qualifier is for teams as well as individuals looking to make the cut in each discipline and to be invited to participate in this year's NCAA Championships, which will be held at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., March 10-11.

Army closes out its dual meet schedule this weekend when it visits Navy for the annual "Star" match The Black Knights, who outshot both Navy and Air Force en rout to winning the President's Trophy Match in the fall, will be looking to snap loose from a 12-match series losing skein.