Eric Boggs
If there’s one thing Ohio State fans have learned over the years, it’s this: when the pistol team shows up, everyone else is basically competing for second place. And sure enough, out in Missouri, the Buckeyes did what Buckeyes do—win national championships like it’s part of the daily routine.
For the sixth straight year, Ohio State walked away with the Open Intercollegiate Pistol Championship, and not in a nail-biter fashion either. The Buckeyes rolled to the title with a jaw-dropping 330-point margin over West Point, leaving the U.S. Naval Academy trailing behind in third. At this point, calling it a “competition” almost feels generous.
The most absurd part? Ohio State didn’t just win—they practically took over the leaderboard like it was reserved seating. The Buckeyes claimed the top eight spots in the individual aggregate standings, which sounds less like a sporting result and more like a typo. Ada Korkhin led the charge with a dominant overall performance, while Marcus Klemp and Blaine Simpson made it an all-scarlet-and-gray podium. Right behind them, more Buckeyes—because of course there were—filled in spots four through eight, just in case anyone forgot who runs this sport.
In the Air Pistol competition, Ohio State again flexed its depth with four shooters landing in the top five. Korkhin, Klemp, Riya Salian, and Simpson made sure the Buckeyes stayed comfortably ahead, as if the outcome was ever in doubt.
Then came Sport Pistol, where things somehow got even more ridiculous. Ohio State didn’t just win the event—they swept all eight top positions. Ankita Deokule took first place, followed by, well, a full lineup of her teammates. At that point, the awards ceremony might as well have been held in Columbus.
Not to be outdone, the Buckeyes wrapped things up in Standard Pistol by sweeping the top nine spots, because eight apparently wasn’t quite enough. Abbie Leverett led that charge, followed by Simpson and Maral Gantsooj, with the rest of the roster stacking the standings like a perfectly arranged highlight reel.
All of this dominance falls under the steady leadership of head coach Emil Milev, who has built a program that doesn’t just win—it overwhelms. With seven national titles since 2018 and eleven in program history, Ohio State has turned pistol shooting into its own personal showcase.
At this point, the rest of the country might want to start asking a different question. It’s no longer “Can anyone beat Ohio State?” but more like “Can anyone at least make them break a sweat?” Because right now, the Buckeyes aren’t just hitting their targets—they are the target everyone else is chasing, and not even coming close to catching.
