LEXINGTON, Va. Jan. 16, 2026 — The pistol club at Virginia Military Institute closed out a successful fall 2025 season in December, after competing in two national-level competitions sanctioned by USA Shooting, the national governing body for international shooting sports in the United States.

Early in the month, the club hosted two of USA Shooting’s Junior Olympics (JO) qualifiers at VMI. Team members participated in the .22 caliber sport pistol and air pistol events. Jamie Palacio ’27 led the team in the .22 caliber event, setting a personal record with a score of 518. Varick Nitzsche ’29 led the team in the air pistol event with a personal record of 525. 

Notably, Sheng-Chun Tseng ’29 set a personal best in his first competitive match with a score of 425. The team’s scores were sent to USA Shooting for consideration in the JO rankings and invitation to the 2026 JO competitions. 

In mid-December, three club members, Palacio, Chase Boucher ’27, and Kate Patrick ’27 traveled to Camp Perry, Ohio, for USA Shooting’s winter air gun championship. During the match, all three posted personal records in air pistol. 

According to head coach Dale Hybl ’94, Patrick placed 11^th and Palacio placed 20^th of the 24 shooters in the women’s category. Boucher placed 12^th of the 17 shooters in the men’s category. 

“I’m exceptionally proud of the team’s growth this semester. In the five formal matches during the semester, the nine members achieved new personal records 25 times. We will spend January and February preparing for the Intercollegiate Pistol National Championship being held in Columbia, Missouri, in March.”   

Marianne Hause
Communications & Marketing
VIRGINIA MILITARY INSTITUTE