Army outshot six-time defending national champion Alaska Fairbanks to earn the tightly contested 2005 National Collegiate Men's and Women's Rifle Championships.

Only three points separated the top four overall finishers in the March 11-12 competition at the United States Olympic Shooting Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

The Black Knights, who captured the school's first NCAA championship in any sport in 50 years, edged Jacksonville State by one point with an overall score of 4,659.

"I am lost for words," said Army head coach Ron Wigger. "I really felt that we would be a contender for the title next year, but it came a year early. I am thrilled to be surrounded by such a great group of Cadets. That in itself is reward enough, but coaching them to the NCAA championship is unbelievable."

Wigger was named as the 2005 Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association coach of the year, an honor he shared last season.

The second-place finish was Jacksonville State's highest in the championships. Nebraska placed third.

Alaska Fairbanks finished fourth overall with a 4,656 mark. The Nanooks, who were aiming for their record seventh straight national championship this year, were leading after the smallbore competition on the opening day of the two-day competition. But a sixth-place showing in air rifle bumped the Nanooks out of contention for the team title. Rounding out the field were Navy, Kentucky, finishing fifth and sixth, respectively.

Matt Rawlings of Alaska Fairbanks collected the individual smallbore championship. Rawlings placed fifth in the qualifying round to earn a spot in the final. The sophomore tied fellow Nanook shooter Jamie Beyerle, who was leading the event after the qualifying round, in the final with a score of 686.5 to force a shoot-off, in which Rawlings outshot Beyerle, 9.3 to 6.9, to claim his second straight title. Nebraska's Kristina Fehlings, Christopher Abalo of Army and Jacksonville State's Joseph Hall rounded out the top five smallbore competitors.

Beth Tidmore, a junior at Memphis, shot 694.2 in air rifle to seize the individual title in that discipline. Tidmore led throughout the qualifying round and edged Andrea Franzen of Nebraska, who finished just 4.8 points behind Tidmore for second place. Alaska Fairbanks' Rawlings took third with a score of 688.4.

Rawlings also was named best overall shooter for the championships.

Beginning this year, the course of fire for the national championships was shortened by half the number of shots, and a final round was added to determine the individual champions in smallbore and air rifle. Also for the first time, electronic targets were used for scoring throughout the tournament.

Previously, the course of fire during the championships included 120 shots in smallbore -- 40 shots each in the prone, standing and kneeling positions -- and 40 shots in air rifle. With the change, student-athletes shot 60 shots in smallbore -- 20 shots each prone, standing and kneeling -- and completed a 60-shot air rifle match.

Team results

1. Army, 4,659 (smallbore 2,328 -- Paul Charbonneau 583, Lucas Leinberger 584, Chris Abalo 585, Michael Jablonski 576; air rifle 2,331 -- David Amiot 581, Abalo 585, Leinberger 585, Jablonski 580); 2. Jacksonville St., 4,658 (smallbore 2,320 -- Joseph Hall 587, Larry Nelson 580, James Hall 580, Kari Baldwin 573; air rifle 2,338 -- Baldwin 592, Audry McMillin 586, James Hall 581, Joseph Hall 579); 3. Nebraska, 4,657 (smallbore 2,319 -- Kristina Fehlings 585, Misty Chanek 585, Kim Chrostowski 573, Kirsten Weiss 576; air rifle 2,338 -- Fehlings 585, Eva Richert 586, Andrea Franzen 588, Chanek 579); 4. Alas. Fairbanks, 4,656 (smallbore 2,334 -- Jamie Beyerle 588, Joseph Hein 579, Matthew Rawlings 585, Matthew Wallace 582; air rifle 2,322 -- Beyerle 586, Hein 565, Rawlings 586, Wallace 585); 5. Navy, 4,637 (smallbore 2,314 -- Joshua Albright 581, Matthew Albright 583, Michael Miller 573, Chris Schneider 577; air rifle 2,323 -- M. Albright 583, Bergman 582, Miller 571, Schneider 587).

6. Kentucky, 4,627 (smallbore 2,310 -- Raymond Geyer 585, Jeff Hamberg 567, Christopher Boggs 575, Vicki Goss 583; air rifle 2,317 -- Amy Sowash 574, Kristi Crenwelge 574, Geyer 590, Goss 579); 7. Memphis, 2,329 (no smallbore team; air rifle 2,329 -- Beth Tidmore 590, Krissey Bahnsen 588, Kate Benjamin 581, Brian Phillips 570); 8. Nevada, 2,317 (no smallbore team; air rifle 2,317 -- Dawn Tarbet 562, Lee Lemenager 574, Ryan Tanoue 588, Meghann Morrill 593); Xavier, 2,289 (smallbore 2,289 -- Richard Gauvin 577, Daniel Ault 557, Hannah Kerr 580, Alice Reed 575; no air rifle team); 10. UTEP, 2,284 (smallbore -- Anna Crabtree 560, Leah Wilcox 580, Rachel Glenn 574, Ila Lemons 570; no air rifle team).

Individual results

Smallbore

1. Matthew Rawlings, Alas. Fairbanks, 686.5 (9.3 shoot-off); 2. Jamie Beyerle, Alas. Fairbanks, 686.5 (6.9 shoot-off); 3. Kristina Fehlings, Nebraska, 685.2; 4. Christopher Abalo, Army, 684.6; 5. Joseph Hall, Jacksonville, 681.9; 6. Matthew Wallace, Alas. Fairbanks,681.6; 7. Hannah Kerr, Xavier, 679.1; 8. Leah Wilcox, UTEP, 673.6; Joseph Hein, Alas. Fairbanks, 579; 10. Chris Schneider, Navy, 577; 11. Michael Jablonski, Army, 576; 12. Chris Boggs, Kentucky, 575.

Air rifle

1. Beth Tidmore, Memphis, 694.2; 2. Andrea Franzen, Nebraska, 689.4; 3. Matthew Rawlings, Alas. Fairbanks, 688.4; 4. Christopher Abalo, Army, 687.2; 5. Ryan Tanoue, Nevada, 687.1; 6. Jamie Beyerle, Alas. Fairbanks, 686.4; 7. Lucas Leinberger, Army, 685.8; 8. Kristina Fehlings, Nebraska, 684.2; 9. Chris Dautel, Tennessee Tech, 581.0, 10. Misty Chanek, Nebraska, 579.0.