Hillsdale, Michigan– August 2026 — Hillsdale College hosted the American Legion’s 3-Position Junior Air Rifle Championship July 23-25 at the new Nimrod Complex at Hillsdale’s Halter Shooting Sports Education Center. Thirty students in the American Legion’s Junior Shooting Sports program competed, and winners and runners-up received scholarships.
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“We were excited to welcome students from across the country to compete at our world-class facility,” said Matt Little, range director at Hillsdale’s John A. Halter Shooting Sports Education Center. “It is exciting to partner with the American Legion to help young people develop skill, character, and patriotism through the shooting sports.”
Maggie Palfrey of Indiana, Pennsylvania, won first place in the precision category, followed by Makenzie Larson of Colorado in second place and Jordan Richards of Tennessee in third. Alexandra Orr of Poquoson, Virginia, won first place in the sporter category for the second time, having claimed the title in 2024. She was followed by Rebecca Ahrens of Virginia in second place and Makenna Quick of Nebraska in third.
Winners in both the precision and sporter categories received $5,000 scholarships funded partly by the American Legion and the Sons of the American Legion. Second-place finishers in both categories received $1,000 scholarships funded by the American Legion Auxiliary.
The first-place winners will also receive a trip to the American Legion’s 107th National Convention in Louisville, Kentucky, next month.
This is the third year Hillsdale has hosted the competition but the first time it has been held in the new Nimrod Complex. Located at the College’s John A. Halter Shooting Sports Education Center, the Nimrod Complex is a 62,000-square-foot facility featuring lanes for precision shooting, archery, smallbore, and centerfire pistol, as well as a classroom and a mezzanine viewing area overlooking the ranges.
About the John Anthony Halter Shooting Sports Education Center
The Halter Center is a state-of-the-art shooting facility located five miles from the Hillsdale College campus. The Center boasts 125 range acres, four international skeet fields, a 25-station sporting clays course, eight American trap fields, five international bunkers, an action shooting range, an enclosed and climate-controlled five-stand range, an international archery range, and a 62,000-square-foot indoor/outdoor rifle and pistol building. The Center is also home to the AcuSport Lodge and Grille and six cottages to accommodate overnight lodging.
Opened in 2008, the Center aims to introduce individuals to shooting sports and encourage interest across all levels of experience. The home of the USA Shooting National Team since 2019, the Halter Center hosts USA Shooting skeet and trap nationals and Junior Olympic development camps and championships. The Center is also the home of Hillsdale’s national championship-winning shotgun and action shooting teams. The Center is open to the public, offering range memberships as well as classes, camps, and other programming focused on the shooting sports and the principles of the Constitution. For more information, visit shootingsports.hillsdale.edu.
About Hillsdale College
Hillsdale College is an independent, nonsectarian, Christian liberal arts college located in southern Michigan. Founded in 1844, the College has built a national reputation through its classical liberal arts core curriculum and its principled refusal to accept federal or state taxpayer subsidies, even indirectly in the form of student grants or loans. It also conducts an outreach effort promoting civil and religious liberty, including a free monthly speech digest, Imprimis, with a circulation of more than 7.5 million. For more information, visit hillsdale.edu.
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