4-H BB Team Competes in Madison County this Month
By Kasey Hall
Jasper Co. 4-H Agent
The new Jasper County 4-H BB team was represented by 11 members at the Northeast District qualification match held on Saturday, April 12 in Madison County. Those 4-H’ers that made up the Precise Purple team included Malcom Ruark, Emmett Dodson, Robby Lanier, Carter Kelly, Jaden Hanks, and Anderson Stephens.
Levi Jones, Colton Moore, Levi Doublestein, Tori Hayles, and Mackenzie Phillips competed on the Silver Sharpshooters team.
They were accompanied by team coaches Erica and Michael Lanier and Jeff Stephens, 4-H Agent Kasey Hall, and the 4-H’ers’ parents and additional family members who came to support them.
Malcom Ruark was again the top shooter on the Jasper County team with his individual score of 319 which qualified him to advance to the state contest that will be held at the Rock Eagle 4-H Center this Saturday, April 26. He had the highest score or tied with a fellow team member in three of the four shooting positions (prone, standing, sitting, and kneeling) for Jasper County.
Robby Lanier tied with Malcom in the standing position with an 81. Tori Hayles is to be commended for having the highest team score in the sitting position with a 74.
Other top Jasper scorers in each position include Anderson who had the second highest score in the prone position with a 79 followed closely by Emmett and Robby who tied for third with a 75. In the standing position, Emmett had the second highest score of 71. Malcom and Robby tied for second with a 71 in the sitting position, and Anderson was right behind them with a 70. In the kneeling position, Levi Doublestein had the second highest score with a 69 followed by Anderson with a 66 and Emmett and Robby with 65 apiece.
Tori Hayles, Carter Kelly, and Malcom Ruark participated in the Wilkes County Sheriff’s Office State Championship Match on Saturday, April 19. They were accompanied by team coach Tyler Hayles and the 4-H’ers’ parents and family members.
Malcom had the highest score among his teammates in the prone (84), sitting (93), and kneeling (73) positions. Tori was second in prone with a 77. Carter had the top score in standing with a 79 followed closely by Tori’s 77. Carter’s score of 73 put him in second in the sitting position while Tori took second place in kneeling. Malcom also had the highest score on the team with a 92 on the safety test.
The 4-H team and their family members gathered on the patio at Dairy Queen on Friday night, April 18 for a get-together hosted by the coaches to celebrate the end of their first BB season together. There they made a huge sign with notes of encouragement, support, and good luck wishes for Malcom (who wasn’t in attendance) as he competes in his first state BB match this Saturday.
A special thank you goes to Kim Gilliam who helped sponsor the new Jasper County 4-H BB team in their first season since 2021. Her generous donation covered the registration fees for the 4-H’ers to compete in the Madison County qualification match.