Six Patriots Garner Top Honors in Archery; UC Places 10 on All-Conference Team

By UC Sports Information

4/18/2022 9:30:00 AM

Williamsburg, KY – Coming off their fourth Mid-South Conference archery championship, the Cumberlands archery team was well represented on MSC end of the year awards earning six top-honors, the conference announce Saturday. In addition seven archers earned MSC First Team All-Conference honors, while three archers garnered second team all-conference accolades.

Kaitlyn Shields and Madison were named the Mid-South Conference Women’s Co-Shooters of the Year for their performance. It marks the fourth time in five years that Cumberlands has had the Shooter of the Year as Cox becomes the first archer in conference history to repeat.

Shields had a strong season capturing the individual conference title at both the indoor and outdoor championships. The Saginaw, MI native carded a 650 in qualifying rounds to earn the second-seed and went 4-0 winning every match by at least three points en route to the gold medal. Shields is having a career-year as it was her first two individual championships. The junior was named to the USA Archery All-Region Team and opened the season by earning bronze in the MSC 3D Championships. In addition to being named the Shooter of the Year, Kaitlyn was also a MSC First Team All-Conference selection for the third time in her career.

Kaitlyn has been a tremendous leader and consistent shooter throughout her time at UC. It's been awesome to see her shine through during the Indoor and Outdoor championships and capture those gold medals. I couldn't be prouder of her being named Shooter of the Year

- Head Coach Kris Strebeck

Cox earned her second consecutive MSC Shooter of the Year honors after a season that is highlighted by two individual national titles. The McKee, KY native won gold at both the USA 3D and Indoor National Championships and set a pair of national records in the process. Cox also won 3D conference, placed second at indoor conference, and earned bronze at the outdoor conference championships. She earned the top qualifying seed in all three events this season and has been a staple on the Patriots team rounds. Cox was named to the USA Archery All-Region team and earned First Team All-Conference for the second straight season.

Madison has been one of the most consistent archers that we have and she continues to perfect her craft everyday whether at practice or in a tournament.

- Head Coach Kris Strebeck

Three individual podium finishes leads to Ceridwyn Salyers being voted the Mid-South Women’s Freshman of the Year. Salyers becomes just the second Patriot to earn this honor joining Brooke Miller, who earned the award in 2019. The Eaton, OH native recorded runner-up finishes at both the indoor and outdoor championships, while posting a third place finish at the 3D Championships. Salyers cruised to the finals at outdoor with a 6-0 and 6-2 win after placing third in women’s recurve at regionals. Salyers was also part of UC’s women’s recurve team that earned gold in all three championships. Salyers is a MSC First Team All-Conference selection as well as was named to the USA Archery All-Region team.

Ceridwyn has come in and made an immediate impact in the women's recurve division. Her dedication and commitment to the program is unwavering and she will be a cornerstone of the recurve division for years to come.

- Coach Strebeck

For the fourth time in the last five years a Cumberlands archer has been named the MSC Men’s Freshman of the Year as Tyler Woolsey etched his name in that elite club. Woosley was dominant in the indoor season as he won the Mid-South Conference and captured the USA Archery Indoor national championships. Woosley closed out his conference season with a 6-4 win over Pikeville’s Jacob Suffridge to earn the bronze medal. The Leitchfield, KY native placed fourth at 3D conference and earned five gold medals during the team rounds of the conference championships. Woosley was a MSC First-Team All-Conference and USA Archery All-Region selection.

Tyler has really found his stride, especially during the indoor season. For him to earn Freshman of the Year is a testament to his work ethic and we are expecting big things for Tyler moving forward.

-Coach Strebeck

The awards weren’t limited to the archers as the Patriots coaching staff of Kris Strebeck and Caleb Kirby also took home honors. Coach Strebeck was named the MSC Coach of the Year making it the third time he garnered this accolade. Strebeck became the first coach to win the honor in consecutive season after helping lead UC to their fourth straight overall crown.

Coach Kirby was voted the MSC Assistant Coach of the Year in its inception year. Kirby is in his fifth season with the Patriots and has been instrumental to the team’s success. In addition to his coaching duties Kirby has been vital in helping run the Mid-South Conference tournament with setting up and monitoring the live scoring.

I'm so proud that Caleb for being named the MSC Assistant Coach of the Year. He has made an invaluable impact on the program and is constantly looking for ways to make our archers and the team better, while pushing to grow the sport. We are very fortunate to have Coach Kirby in our program and look forward to see what's to come.

- Head Coach Kris Strebeck

Cumberlands led the way with the ten all-conference selections, which was five more than the next closest team. Joining Cox, Salyers, Shields, and Woosley on the first team are Marissa Harding, Katie Karr, and Hannah Moose. Elijah Crawford, Lidia Quezada, and Jacob Valentini earned second team accolades.

Karr and Harding were the top performers in their respective divisions. Karr placed first at both the 3D and Indoor conference championships, before finishing runner-up at outdoor. She has been a staple of the Patriots women’s barebow team that notched two golds and a silver medal this season. Harding was one of UC’s most consistent shooters in the women’s compound division as she placed in the top eight in all three phases. Moose won the 3D conference and national titles and earned All-Region accolades.

Crawford, Quezada, and Valentini each tallied a pair of podium finishes at the conference levels. Crawford won men’s barebow 3D and finished third at Indoor, while Quezada finished atop the podium at Indoor and earned the bronze medal during outdoor. In men’s recurve, Valentini garnered a silver and bronze medal in the 3D and indoor season, respectfully.

Cumberlands will return to the range May 19-22 when they travel to USA Archery Outdoor National Championship in Chula Vista, CA.

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