Archery qualifiers ready for state tournament March 7-8

HOT SPRINGS — Ninety teams are poised and ready to compete for the 17th annual Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Archery in the Schools State Championship March 7-8 at the Hot Springs Convention Center and Bank OZK Arena.

The competition will comprise the top 30 teams in three age-based divisions that participated in qualifying tournaments held from Nov. 23, 2024-Feb. 1, 2025.

“We had 3,364 students compete in 25 different qualifying events for our bull’s-eye competition,” Aimee Swaim, AIS program coordinator for the AGFC, said. “Teams could enter as many qualifying tournaments as they wanted, and we selected the top 30 teams in each division based on their best score.”

Six additional archers were given invitations to shoot at the state championship who were on teams that didn’t qualify.

“There are a few individuals who stood out during qualifying tournaments, but their team didn’t make it,” Swaim said. “So we allowed six archers who scored 280 or higher (out of 300) who weren’t on qualifying teams to shoot on an individual basis at the state championship.”

The AGFC is stepping up this year’s championship with additional vendors and activities for visitors and competitors to enjoy throughout the competition.

“The Recreational Shooting Division partnered with the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation for our vendor selection and activities area,” Swaim said. “We will have several vendors on-site; including a T-shirt vendor, archery store vendors and some colleges who have archery teams. We’ll also have the AGFC aquarium, an education booth, opportunities to shoot 3D archery, a Bull’s-eye practice range and a portable blow-up archery range provided by the AGFF.”

Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry also will hold their annual canned food drive. The team that brings the most nonperishable food each day will receive $1,000.

The elementary (fourth and fifth grades) and middle school (sixth through eighth grades) divisions compete Friday beginning at 9 a.m., with the day expected to wrap up at 4 p.m. with trophy presentations. The seniors (ninth through 12th grades) begin at 9:30 a.m. Saturday and trophies are expected to be presented at about 2 p.m.

Each flight takes about 50 minutes, with competitors shooting 15 arrows from 10 meters and 15 more from 15 meters, plus five warm-up shots from each distance. Archery targets have 10 rings, each designating a score with a bull’s-eye being 10 points. All archers use a Mathews Genesis bow with no sights and a universal draw length and aluminum Easton Genesis 1820 arrows.

The Archery in the Schools program (formerly Arkansas National Archery in the Schools Program) began as a pilot project with 10 schools in 2005. Based on the National Archery in the Schools program, AIS brings competitive archery into elementary, middle and high schools throughout Arkansas, and a state championship event was added in 2009 to complete the year’s activities.

Visit www.agf.com/ais to learn more about Archery in the Schools and how to keep up with your team’s scores.

Qualifying teams by division:

Elementary (4th/5th grade)

Washington Middle School (El Dorado)

Hill Farm Elementary (Bryant)

Charleston Elementary

Valley Springs Elementary

Salem Elementary (Bryant)

Taylor Elementary

Magnet Cove Elementary

Valley View Elementary

Murfreesboro Elementary

Omaha Elementary

Hackler Intermediate School (Mountain Home)

Bergman Elementary

Lamar Elementary

Columbia Christian School

Glen Rose Elementary

Springhill Elementary (Bryant)

Lead Hill Elementary

Collegeville Elementary (Bryant)

Jasper Elementary

Waldron Elementary

Eagle Mountain Magnet Elementary (Batesville)

Bryant Elementary

Alpena Elementary

Greene County Tech Elementary

Southside Elementary (Batesville)

Parkway Elementary (Bryant)

Perryville Elementary

Robert L. Davis Elementary (Bryant)

Arkansas Arts Academy

Hurricane Creek Elementary (Bryant)

 

Middle School Division (6th-8th grades)

Barton Jr. High (El Dorado)

Washington Middle School (El Dorado)

Des Arc Schools

Valley Springs Schools

Bethel Middle School (Bryant)

Taylor Middle School

Columbia Christian School

Alpena Schools

Bergman Schools

Charleston Middle School

Bryant Middle School

Omaha Schools

South Pike County (Murfreesboro)

Pangburn Schools

Lead Hill Schools

Valley View Junior High

Arkansas Arts Academy

Greene County Tech Middle School

Southside Middle School (Batesville)

Glen Rose

Pinkston Middle School (Mountain Home)

Magnet Cove Middle School

DQ Cubs (De Queen)

Jasper Schools

Waldron Middle School

Marshall Schools

Homeschoolers On Target (Pulaski County)

Maynard Schools

Ozark Junior High School

 

High School (9th-12th grades)

Magnet Cove High School

Bryant High School

Cabot High School

Valley Springs High School

Alpena High School

Taylor High School

Pangburn High School

Omaha Schools

De Queen High School

South Pike County Schools (Murfreesboro)

Charleston High School

Bergman Schools

Arkansas Arts Academy

Greene County Tech High School

Lead Hill Schools

Acorn High School

Jasper Schools

Pottsville High School

River Roots W.I.L.D. (Searcy County)

Glen Rose High School

Sylvan Hills High School (Sherwood)

Ozark High School

Waldron High School

Stuttgart High School

Vilonia High School

Spa City Archery (Hot Springs)

Southside High School (Batesville)

Deer/Mt. Judea

Star City High School

Prairie Grove High School

 

Schools with Individual Qualifiers

Middle School (3 Students)

River Roots W.I.L.D

Warriors Home School

Spa City Archery

 

High School (3 Students)

Hillcrest High School (Strawberry)

Lincoln High School (Lincoln)

Valley View High School

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CUTLINES:

GIRL SCORING
More than 3,300 students competed in 25 qualifying tournaments to participate in the Archery in the Schools State Championship March 7-8 in Hot Springs. AGFC photo by Mike Wintroath.

ARCHERS AT LINE
The top male and female archers at the state championship will receive scholarships ranging from $500 to $2,500. AGFC photo by Mike Wintroath.

CROWD
This year marks the 17th year of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Archery in the Schools State Championship. The program began in 2005 with 10 schools and has grown to a statewide education effort since its inception. AGFC photo by Mike Wintroath.