JOURNAL SPORTS
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Benton’s Savannah O’Donohue shot her way to a National Bullseye Tournament championship as the seventh-grader led her middle school Tigers to a team national title at the recent National Archery in the Schools Program event.
Out of 2,054 female middle school archers from across the country, O’Donohue outdueled her teammate Charli Long for the individual title May 12-14, according to a press release from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries.
Benton Middle School participates in the Archery in Louisiana Schools program administered by the LDWF. It’s part of the NASP, which introduces students in grades 4-12 to international target-style archery.
Both BMS archers scored a 295, but O’Donohue recorded 26 scores of 10 while Long had 25.
O’Donohue was the highest-scoring female archer of any age. She and Long are invited to the Scholarship Shootout at the Open Championship in Kentucky on June 23-25. Scholarships range from $1,000-$5,000.
Benton’s Madison Hammersla placed 13th nationally with a 290. The middle school Tigers claimed the national championship with a total of 3,408 points while Haughton Middle finished 37tht out of 205 teams with 3,238 points.
Calvary Baptist Academy’s Jewel Blakely finished 10th nationally with a 291, meaning four of the top 13 archers nationally call Bossier or Caddo Parish home.
In the elementary division of bullseye, Benton took second place nationally out of 127 teams. The Tigers piled up 3,188 points.
Finnley George was the top Tiger, tallying 281 points to finish 10th out of 1,243 archers.
Stockwell Place Elementary claimed eighth as a team and boasted sixth-place archer Kylee Ducote, who shot a 284.
On the boys side, Stockwell Place’s Kayson Warner placed 25th with a 277.
Benton Middle, Calvary’s Blakely take national titles in IBO 3D
While the bullseye tournament is the traditional form of archery competition, local shooters proved they could rank among the nation’s best in the IBO 3D Challenge, which features foam animal figure targets ranging in size from small to large.
Calvary Baptist Academy’s Jewel Blakely took the top middle school spot nationally out of 978 archers. Blakely scored a 292.
The Benton Middle girls claimed another national title with 1,708 points, topping 122 teams.
Four Benton girls ranked in the top 25 in the category with Madison Hammersla leading the way in third place with 291 points. Kyleigh Bernard (18th) and Victoria McClung (20th) shot 284 while O’Donohue (25th) produced a 283.
The Haughton girls finished 21st with 1,619 points.
Benton Middle boys member Peyton Lewis logged a 25th-place finish with a 284.
In the elementary division, the Benton Intermediate girls placed second with Stockwell Place Elementary boys finishing eighth.
Benton’s Juliana Londono (269 points) finished ninth out of 527 archers while teammate Finnley George (267) placed 12th.
Stockwell’s Nathan White placed ninth with 273 points while Calvary’s Brooks Beaty finished 23rd with 270 points.
Photo courtesy of Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries
