The 2015 David L. Swanson Memorial Rifle Match
The late David L. Swanson, an active member of the Connecticut junior shooting community, had his shooting career tragically cut short when he passed away as a teenager. The Swanson family, wishing to recognize David’s passion for smallbore rifle shooting, donated a handsome trophy in his memory, to be placed into annual junior competition.
The first David L. Swanson Memorial Rifle Match was held in 1963 and continued, uninterrupted until 1986 when issues with the Manchester Rifle Club’s range caused a halt. Jason Stansfield took custody of the trophy and records with the hopes of reviving competition. While reminiscing about ‘The Old Days’ with Steve Rocketto the Swanson Match came up and the two dedicated themselves to bring the match back. And so, through the efforts of two long time Connecticut junior coaches, the Swanson Match has returned to competition.
Sandwiched between the Cos Cob Rifle Club in the west and the Ocean State Junior Rifle League in the east, Stratford PAL, Blue Trail Range, Metacon, Quaker Hill, Vinal Tech, Bridgeport Rifle Club, Avon Old Farms, Vinal Tech, Xavier High School brought 129 juniors to the Quaker Hill Rod and Gun Club on December 5th and 6th to compete in the revived tournament.
After more than a case of ammunition had poured down range and the targets were scored individual and team champions emerged from the gun smoke. Only five perfect targets were fired in the sub junior prone event but three of them were by Blue Trail Range’s Emma Acampora who took home sub junior honors with a perfect 300X300. Stratford Police Athletic League’s Lauren Chechoski put together a 297 for second just a heard of team mates Taylor Niemiec’s 295.
Tyler Kutz, of Cos Cob, compiled a 294 to take Class A honors just a point ahead of Metacon’s Kayle Pasko who was knotted up with SPAL’s Jake Sturrock at 293 with teh tied breaker going to Pasko. Tyler Daniels, of host Quaker Hill was the Class B champ shooting a 269 with Evan Rossignol of Metacon hot on his heels with a 268. Third Class B Sydney Hawke, of BTR, was pressuring Rossignol with a 267.Quaker Hill’s Nadia Opalenik, 237, and brother Josh, 234, took first and third in Class C with BTR’s Christian Reboul sandwiched between them with a 236.
Team competition saw Stratford and Blue Trail battle it out for first with the SPAL pulling it out with an 1160X fired by Chechoski, Jake Sturrock, Emma Sturrock, and Taylor Niemiec. Blue Trail’s Acampora, Zack Weisz, Lisa Courville, and Jonathan Rocha compiled a 1151for second. Metacon, Pasko, James McGovern, Rissignol, and James Charpentier and Quaker Hill Gold, David Ashley, David Kohanski, Melanie Trotocahud, and Billy Wolfe, tied on score with a 1074 and share third place.
The three position junior event began with prone champion Acampora’s brother Michael tied with SPAL’s Hope Kavulich, each shooting a 294. Mike managed a 97 standing to Hope’s 96 to win the Swanson Trophy and, perhaps more importantly, avoid a lot of needling from his little sister on the car ride home. Vinal Tech rifleman Scott Condo posted a 293 for third overall. Dylan Lorance, who shoots for Xavier, was Class A winner with a 292. A three way dog fight involving a trio of 291s shot by SPAL’s Lauren Chechoski, Kaitlyn Kutz from Cos Cob, and Blue Trail’s Joshua Lindgren called for reading the rules on tie breakers which left Lingren on the outside looking in at a second place finish for Chechoski and third place for Kutz.
The tie breaking was far from over as Class B shooters Lili Vazquez from Grasso Tech, Avon Old Farm’s Preston Sayyah, and D.J Titus from Rhode Island’s South County Gun Club all carded 265s. It went to standing to place Vazquez first with the other two still tied with the same score standing. Sayyah shot a 91 kneeling to Titus’ 90 for second.
The Class C finish did not require any hair splitting as Blue Trail’s Sean Richard’s 227, was points ahead of second place Kylie Darby of Grasso. Quaker Hill’s Avery Thomas closed out the individual awards.
Xavier’s Mike Acampora, Lorance, Jacob Lagace, and Mike Labella put together a dominating 1155 to wrap up the team win. Cos Cob, which has been undergoing a recent shooting renaissance, saw Kaitlyn Kutz, Gillian Riordan, Laura, Milukas, and Stephany Allan compile an 1128 to just beat out SPAL’s Hope Kavulich, Sophia Cuozzo, Brendon LaRock, and Brenden Stuart’s 1125.
The match would not have been possible without the generosity of the Quaker Hill Rod and Gun Club donating it’s range. George Planeta, Ryan McKee, Jason Stansfield, Nicole Panko, Shawn Carpenter, Mark Wujtewicz, Cadets Dave Rose and Rand Ford of the US Coast Guard Academy, and Steve and Hap Rocketto who ran the range, did the statistical work, and set up and cleaned up. Mr. and Mrs. Ed Welch ably assisted by daughter Emma, a member of the Grasso Tech Rifle Team and a Culinary Arts student at the school, did yeoman work in the kitchen keeping the hoards well fed with an assortment of hot foods, including the traditional Swanson Match hot dogs, and snacks.
The 2016 David L. Swanson Memorial Rifle Match is scheduled for December 2, 3.and 4 at Quaker Hill Rod and Gun Club.
2015-ct-swanson (PDF, 107KB)
