By: Tate Wehrle (11)

The archery team delivered a record-breaking performance crushing the old record by 21 points at the Missouri Archery Classic Tournament which brought them to a ranking of third in the nation, turning the event into a major milestone not just for one shooter, but for the entire program.

For Riley Berendzen (11), the tournament was especially memorable. She shot a personal best and hit two perfect 50s at 15 meters, something she had never done before.

 “I shot really well in this tournament. This is my personal best,” Berendzen said, adding that shooting those two perfect rounds “was awesome.”

Even after facing a rough round at 10 meters and battling nerves, she stayed focused and finished strong. For her, the biggest challenge was mental, explaining that she was “just trying to stay out of my head, sometimes I get a little worked up and nervous.”

While individual performances stood out, the tournament showed the strength of the whole team. Between rounds, teammates constantly checked on each other, kept spirits high, and helped calm nerves. 

Berendzen said the team supports each other by “checking each other and seeing how everyone is doing to try to keep spirits up and to try to keep some people from getting too nervous.”

That encouragement helped shooters reset and stay focused throughout the event.

By the end of the competition, the team finished as the top high school out of 60 other schools, bringing home a trophy and a $1,500 prize. Even more importantly, they set a new school record with a team score of 3,433, the highest the program has ever shot. 

The result gave the team a huge boost, and Berendzen said it was “just like a great confidence boost for us, we shot the best that we’ve ever shot,” adding that if they perform like that at state, “I think we got a good chance at winning.”

The win means more than just a trophy. The prize money will help support the archery program, giving the team more resources as they continue to grow. Breaking the school record also gives the shooters a major confidence boost heading toward the state tournament. After proving they can shoot their best on a big stage against schools from multiple states, the team now believes they have a real chance to compete for another title.