A close-up of the rare shot scored by Alex Hale.

Ashville Middle School’s archery team brought home its second consecutive national championship this month, and four of its members placed among the top 10 archers in the country in their divisions.

“Obviously, we are very proud of all of the team,” said Billy Wakefield, an officer for the Ashville Archery Boosters Club.  “They’re the hardest working bunch of kids I’ve ever been around, and we’re proud of how well they represented their school and the community.”

Ashville High School’s team finished fifth in its first appearance at the national championship this year, and ninth grader Stephanie Whisenant tied for first place in the high school female division.  She shot a 296, four points short of a perfect score.

Ashville’s teams qualified to compete for the national championship in Louisville, Ky., after claiming the state titles last month in Birmingham.

The middle school team scored a total of 3,378 of a possible 3,600 points to finish first among a field of 106 middle school teams.  More than 7,000 students from 33 states and one Canadian province, including 16 teams from 11 schools in Alabama, participated in the national tournament. 

Nathan Owens finished sixth in the high school male division, and Jeremy Stewart was seventh in the middle school male division.  Ryan Whisenhunt came in sixth in the elementary school male division, and Tabitha Tucker and Jessica Sybert tied for fourth place in the elementary school female division.

Scoring for the championship was based on Olympic-style target archery, and the National Archery in Schools Program (NASP) sponsored the tournament.  In Alabama, the NASP is a joint venture between the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division and the state Department of Education. 

“The program promotes participation in the lifelong sport of archery as part of a school’s physical education course and after-school programs,” said spokesman Marisa Lee.  It also meets the criteria for one credit for physical education required for high school graduation.

“It’s not just about winning and losing,” Wakefield said.  “It helps the students develop character and work ethic.  And these kids work very hard.  They come to practice early and stay late.  We’re very excited about their potential.  Our oldest archers are only in the 10^th grade, so the next three or four years ahead of us look very promising.”