Alfred State Archery member Jacob Patanella recently won the national championship in the men’s hunter class while competing in the USA Archery National 3D Collegiate Championships in Foley, Alabama.
Patanella, a mechanical engineering technology major from Churchville, secured first place after earning a score of 430 in the two-round, 40-target format using Archery Shooter’s Association (ASA) rules. After a solid first round of 20 targets in the morning that had him in the mix among top shooters, Patanella surged in the second round to pass the field and seal a dominant victory for the Alfred State Pioneers.
Altogether, nine members of the Alfred State Archery team competed in the championships, which included 348 archers representing 29 colleges and universities from coast to coast.
In team round competition (composed of the top three scorers in each class), the Alfred State men’s hunter team was among the top eight teams who made the elimination bracket and were seeded fourth but lost a battle with Lindsey Wilson College and finished the national tournament in fifth place. The men’s K45 finished ninth, just missing the bracket.
Coach Greg Sammons (Level 3-NTS) was elated with the overall outcome for the Pioneers, stating, “I’m very proud of the team’s overall performance as they both shot consistently and stayed with their course plan throughout their rounds. But the story of this 2019 championship, the one that should be remembered the most for the Pioneers, is senior Jacob Patanella winning a national championship in individual competition against the best collegiate archers in the country. As the pressure built, Jacob not only kept his cool but performed even stronger.”
The championship marks the conclusion of the collegiate 3D season and the Pioneers now transition to indoor season with a tournament schedule that will last until March 2020.
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