The Green Creek Archery Club Junior Olympic Archery Development (JOAD) group travelled to Georgia for their Indoor State Championship tournament on Saturday, Feb. 15, and once again came home winners, including one state champion.

Rachel Roberson, Josh Streacker, Rick Burney and Phil Burney, participated in the tournament, each in separate divisions.

The highlight of the day for the team was when Roberson won the gold medal and earned the title of state champion in her division. Coach Jim Vennera said she has been working hard and practicing, which has paid off.

Streacker and Phil Burney brought home silver medals in their respective divisions, and Rick Burney tied for third in his division.

The coaches were extremely proud of how the archers handled themselves during the tournament and used what they had been taught to bring their best effort, score fairly and enjoy the experience of participating in a tournament with other skilled youth who share their interest in archery.

Before each tournament Vennera writes down on a range of scores where he thinks each archer will shoot, but doesn’t share the estimate with the archers until after they have finished shooting.

At this tournament the high score he estimated for Rick Burney was the exact score he shot (540 out of a possible 600) to tie for third place.

Burney was shooting in the most competitive division in the tournament in which the winner of the division was also the highest scoring in the tournament with a 593. Phil Burney shot a personal best of 535, which exceeded Coach Vennera’s expectations by 5 points and won the silver medal in his class.

For young people ages 8-21 who are interested in archery, the Green Creek Archery JOAD club is the place to learn. With Coach Vennera’s talent and experience he has been able to consistently help the archers improve their shot to the point where kids who have been shooting for a year or less are able to go to tournaments and bring home a medal.

So far this year the team has produced an outdoor state champion, an indoor state champion, 4 second place finishes and 2 third place finishes, as well as multiple medals at the other tournaments they have attended. Coach Vennera is a Level 4 National Coach and an active shooter himself.

He has received training from the US Olympic Coach, and he has assisted in the coaching of many of our current Olympic athletes.

“We are fortunate to have him actively coaching in our area since there aren’t many coaches of his caliber in the entire United States and few who can match his experience, dedication and record,” said Burney.

For more information on the Green Creek JOAD club or to get in touch with Coach Vennera, contact Steve Burney at Medicap Pharmacy in Columbus, 828-894-6112.

– article submitted 

by Steve Burney