Reinstatement of the Xavier University Rifle Team

By signing this petition I hereby pledge my support to the Xavier University Rifle Team and the continuation of the sport at Xavier.

The Xavier University Rifle Team can trace its roots back to 1937 when the sport was first established at Xavier. Since that time the team has enjoyed a proud tradition of success. When the NCAA adopted rifle as a sponsored sport in the early 1980s, the team quickly made its mark on the national scene as it continues to do today.

Xavier Rifle has produced 17 different All-Americans. Among these 17 All-Americans are two Olympians who represented the United States and Xavier at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia and at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece.

The Xavier Rifle Team reached new heights of success over the past five years. At the NCAA National Championships the team finished in second place in 2000, fourth in 2001, third in 2002, second in 2003 and fifth in 2004. Only two rifle teams in the entire country have had five consecutive top five finishes in NCAA Championships and Xavier Rifle is one of them. In Xaviers outstanding athletic history only the rifle team has reached a National Championship Final.

Success in the classroom is just as important as success on the range. The rifle team held the highest team GPA at Xavier for four straight semesters (Fall 2000-Spring 2002). Since the Fall semester of 1998, Xavier Rifle Team members have earned perfect 4.0 GPAs 16 times.

As the team gained National prominence, each year more and more students from all over the country have become attracted to Xavier because of its rifle team. Each November Xavier Rifle hosts the Walsh Match open to anyone who makes the trip to Cincinnati. Many high school student-athletes compete in this match. It is recognized as the largest indoor rifle match in the country and every year Xavier Rifle brings over 200 competitors along with their parents and coaches to Xavier to compete in this match. It gives Xavier exposure in many areas of the country that it would not otherwise have.

Xaviers mission is to educate. Educate the whole person- mind, body and spirit. It is through this mission Xavier supports athletics. Xavier proudly serves the communities around the world it is involved with. We ask that Xavier continue to serve the rifle community, a community that has provided Xavier with so many benefits. We ask Xavier to lead the sport towards future growth and not take away the dream of so many in the communities of this country who aspire to compete in collegiate rifle.

What Xavier Rifle represents is an opportunity for student-athletes from all over the country to do something they love while gaining an education. Rifle team members and alumni proudly represent Xavier not only in the sport of shooting but in the classroom and our communities. They are grateful for the opportunity Xavier provided, to be part of a team, part of the Xavier Rifle family and the Xavier University family.

Through its past support of the rifle team Xavier has accomplished its mission to enhance the intellectual, moral, spiritual, emotional, and social growth of young men and women from across this country.

With this petition we are asking Xavier University to continue to support the rifle team so that many more will have that same opportunity.