It’s been four years since Winston Academy started an archery program and the last three years have been filled with competition.
Dawn Steed volunteered as coach and has helped the team grow over the last few years and has seen the sport as a whole grow just like her team. At this point, archery programs around the state are still slowly catching on and junior colleges are beginning to take notice with a few carrying programs allowing players to earn scholarships to continue their career.
Steed has seen the sport create opportunities for athletes that might not be football, basketball or baseball stars but they’ve found their niche with the bow and arrow.
“Nobody sits the bench. Everybody gets to play and gets the same arrows,” Steed said. “That’s the great thing about it. Everybody gets an opportunity to showcase their skills and find something that they’re good at.”
WA’s team has become quite good competing in Class 3A. They finished first at Eiland Middle School in a tournament during the regular season and came in second at another tournament at EMS. They’ve also had meets at Philadelphia High School, Leake Academy and hosted one at WA and they finished in the top three at every competition.
In the North State meet, the elementary and middle school each finished first place with the high school team finishing second to Leake Academy. The team shot a 3013 with a perfect score being 3600. Bryce Clark was the top shooter overall at 268 individually. The state championships saw the elementary finish third, the middle school finished second and the high school finished fourth. The team shot 2998 at the state championships with Clark shooting 261.
The work from Clark and his fellow eighth grader Kody Young this year have earned them an opportunity to compete with some of the best in the state in an all-star event at the All-State games at Copiah Community College in May.
They’ve been just two of the many players that have stood out for Steed this year.
“Bryce and Kody are great shooters and they’ve been rewarded,” Steed said. “One of my other top shooters is Sam Gilmer. Sadie Steed and Riley Petermen are two of my top females. We’ve had a really great year.”
Steed commended the support that her program has gotten from the very beginning from Headmaster Farrell Rigby and former president of the board Robert Taylor who supported the program when it began.
She said that the program itself is self-funded with the work put in by the parents and grandparents of the athletes at meets running the concession stand, the meet and cleaning things up afterwards. The program wouldn’t be where it is without those individuals, according to Steed.
