Our Lady of Lourdes student takes first place at state archery competition

Students earn third and fifth place team trophies as well

posted on April 15, 2011

Student archery teams from Our Lady of Lourdes Elementary School in Porcupine brought home third and fifth place team trophies from the South Dakota State Archery Tournament in Rapid City.

Seventh grader Justin Mesteth also won the seventh and eighth grade individual championship, earning him a spot at the National Archery Tournament in Yankton, South Dakota on April 16, 2011.

“It was overwhelming to see an archery tournament of such magnitude,” says Wilbur Ferguson, athletic director and archery coach at Our Lady of Lourdes. “All of the students were really nervous at first, but after a few shots together as a team, they got ‘fired up’ and it was unreal to see how excited they were.”

Fourth graders Jevan Hacker and Carrie Twiss, fifth graders Joy Twiss, Jasmine Derby and Jeffery Pourier, and sixth graders Chanda Lays Bad and Savannah Jacobs participated in the fifth-sixth grade division, earning third place overall in the competition.

Seventh graders Justin Mesteth, Bobby Pourier, NuVassie Blacksmith, Robert Pourier and Brian Beard, and eighth graders Nick Reddest, Brandon Blue Bird, Bailey Clifford and Peppermint Twiss participated in the seventh-eighth grade division, placing fifth in the competition.

“The kids really love it,” says Ferguson. “For me, it’s not about winning. It’s about seeing the kids smiling, glowing and exchanging high-fives as the shoot.”

Ferguson also says that Mesteth is going to do well in the next stage of the competition.

“He is a very, very serious competition and is known for his appreciation for the sport as well as his willingness to help others,” he says.

This is the first year archery has been offered to students at Our Lady of Lourdes.

The state tournament has been held since 2007, and is hosted by the National Archery in Schools Program in coordination with the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Department. More than 300 students from 27 schools across the region participated in the state tournament this year.