VILSECK, Germany -- "It's really calming for me," said junior Alexis Finster, Vilseck High School.
"I usually try to take it slow and simple," added Max Pertrunyak, a freshman from Heidelberg.
Vilseck junior Meraleigh Randle tightened her lips and smiled, "I'm just a happier person when I'm shooting."
These are comforting words coming from rifle-wielding high school students, who despite their age, are collected and serious about their craft.
Finster, Pertrunyak and Randle were three of 36 students representing six schools that participated in the Department of Defense Dependents Schools European Marksmanship Championships at Vilseck High School, Jan. 28.
Students traveled near and far, many for the first time, to compete in the annual competition.
Six shooters from each team made their mark in a total of four shooting rounds. Each round consisted of 10 shots fired in each of the three positions -- prone, kneeling and standing -- for a maximum of 300 points per round.
Riflery requires keen precision, focused breathing and a proper stance. It's a solitary sport where, according to Jackson Pierce, a sophomore from Hohenfels, the outcome lies purely on the shoulder of each shooter.
"When you're shooting out there it doesn't matter how anyone else is doing, it's all on you," said Pierce. "You're the one pulling the trigger."
"It's mentally exhausting because you really have to focus," added Pierce, narrowing his eyes as if centering in on a target. "It's pure concentration."
Maggie Ehmann, a freshman and first-year shooter from Patch High School, had a similar look of concentration on her face as she knelt on the table and loaded her air rifle. After each shot, she glanced nervously back at her coach. While her posture conveyed defeat, her scorecard told a different story. Ehmann not only helped her team reach first place, but she also bested the competition in the kneeling round with a top score of 96 (out of 100 points).
These highs and lows of competition rang true for majority of the day. At the halfway mark, there was no clear leader.
"It's anyone's game, really," said Finster, glancing at the calculated scores. "We're all within a few points, but we have a good chance."
Finster was confident with her shooting and completed the competition only one point behind her own expectation of 280. Finster and the other five members of the Vilseck rifle team (an all-girl enterprise) eked out second place in front of Hohenfels, finishing with 1,354 and 1,353, respectively.
Patch remained stiff competition throughout the championship, crowning with 1,373 points out of a possible 1,500. This was their third win in four years. Their first place victory was accentuated with the highest shooter award, earned by Mercedes Romih, who blasted the competition with a total score of 284.
Ansbach, Baumholder and Heidelberg claimed fourth, fifth and sixth place in the marksmanship match.
For many of the top shooters, the competition was a stepping stone for the Army JROTC Service Championship match to be held in Camp Perry, Ohio, and Anniston, Ala., Feb. 9-11. DoDDS-Europe students will endure the lengthy trip to the States for a chance to hoist the first place trophy high and showcase their shooting skills to military and college recruiters.
Vilseck High School senior Georgianna Castro, however, set her sights even further.
"I was just talking to my dad about becoming a sniper," she said.
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