Columbia Academy's eighth annual Cougar Classic archery tournament was bigger and better than ever, with nearly 2,300 students representing 64 schools throughout the state in an exciting week of friendly competition at the Columbia Exposition Center. The Cougars brought home seven trophies in the process, led by eighth-grade standout Bella Rowell, who shattered a junior high state record with an exceptional score of 298.
Rowell, who was selected as Rush Foundation Hospital's Athlete of the Year in July 2022, added even more to her list of accomplishments at a young age with another exceptional performance in the Cougar Classic. Her individual score of 298 out of a possible 300 was the same score registered by last year's Junior Nationals winner, and it was more than enough to earn her the honor of being the top overall archer in last week's tournament. CA archery coach Mike Barber said he was thrilled but not necessarily surprised by the record-breaking performance from arguably the best young archer he's had the opportunity to coach.
"I couldn't be more proud of this young lady," Barber said. "Bella shot five perfect 50s on her way to a record 298 score out of a perfect 300. It's unheard of for most junior high students to score that high, but for Bella, it's not that big of a surprise because we know she's one of the best in the state. She's a great shooter but an incredible young lady."
The Cougars also received the highest score among junior high males from Cooper McNabb, who brought home a first-place trophy for his score of 286. CA also earned trophies for first place among MAIS schools in both the junior high and high school divisions, along with a trophy for placing first in the new extreme division.
Of all 64 schools that participated in the event, CA finished with the second highest overall score, being narrowly outdone by D'Iberville for the top honor from the tournament. Barber said it certainly wasn't the best performance he's seen from his team as a whole, but he was still proud of how exceptionally well his students represented themselves and the school in an event he looks forward to hosting each and every year.
"What a week. We shot our worst competition this season and still beat everyone except D’Iberville," he said. "We had the No. 1 overall archer score in the tournament with Bella, the top middle school MAIS male and female and the top high school female again with Bella. We won seven trophies. Our new X-treme team took the first place trophy, shooting the highest score I've seen on the AIMS site from the past state tournaments.
"We didn't shoot near our
potential, but we still did better than most. (I'm) very proud of our kids."
Several other local teams fared well at the Cougar Classic as well, including West Marion Elementary, which took home first place in the AIMS Elementary division. Connor Morgan led the way for the Trojans with a score of 260.
East Marion was well represented in the competition as well, exhibiting improvement that led to high praise from Barber, who looks forward to watching them continue to grow as they compete each year going forward.
"The growth this team has had the last two to three years is amazing," Barber said. "Not only are they good shooters, but they are more disciplined and respectful than most of the schools we see."
Barber said the program is already looking forward to their next opportunity to host the Cougar Classic, and he wishes all who were involved the best of luck as they continue competing in 2023.
