2024-25 Rifle Roster
Roster
Kovach, Joey
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
/ Rifle
Joey Kovach
- Class:
- Junior
- Hometown:
- Bedford, Pa.
- Previous School:
- Bedford HS
- High School:
- Bedford HS
Bio
Awards and Honors
2024-25: Earned All-Ohio Valley Conference second team status in smallbore and air rifle…Competed in all 12 matches with a 574.2 smallbore average, a 581.8 air rifle average and a 1155.9 aggregate average…Fired a personal best of 582 in smallbore against Memphis (Nov. 22)...Set a new career mark in air rifle at 589 at the NCAA Qualifier Feb. 22...Set a new career watermark in aggregate scoring at the OVC Championsip (Feb. 1) at 1164.
2023-24: Earned All-Ohio Valley Conference second team status in smallbore…Competed in all 11 matches in both events, averaging a 579 air rifle score to go along with a 577 average smallbore tally…Managed a career-high score of 586 in air rifle in the Jan. 14 spring opener against Georgia Southern…Accounted for a career-best 581 points in smallbore at Jacksonville State on Nov. 17…Season-high 1,163 aggregate points occurred on Nov. 11 at Morehead State…Earned a spot on the Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association Scholastic All-American list…Was named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll for both the fall and spring semesters.
2022-23: Enjoyed an outstanding debut season, collecting three OVC postseason honors (second team smallbore, All-Newcomer air rifle, All-Newcomer smallbore)…Topped the squad in aggregate scoring twice while leading the team in smallbore points on five separate occasions and racking up a team-high in air rifle once…Saw time in all 12 matches in both air rifle and smallbore…Registered scoring averages of 581 in air rifle and 573 in smallbore…Tallied a season-best 585 in air rifle against Ole Miss on Oct. 16 and dialed up a season-high 580 smallbore score at Morehead State on Nov. 6…High aggregate score of the season (1,163 points) came on Nov. 6 at Morehead State…Was named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll for both the fall and spring semesters…Was named to the OVC Commissioner’s Honor Roll.
Before UTM: Graduated from Bedford High School and shot competitively for the Everett High School rifle team, where he competed alongside current Skyhawk teammate Jesse Chamberlain…Helped lead EHS to a pair of state championships and its third consecutive Allegheny Mountain Rifle Conference championship as a senior under head coach Coltin Rice…Was responsible for a team-high 563 in smallbore (third-best in the state of Pennsylvania) and a 384 in air rifle (seventh in the state) as EHS won the smallbore and air rifle titles at the 2022 PA Interscholastic High School 3-P Smallbore and Precision Air Rifle Championships…Fired a personal-best 289 in the league title match to help the Warriors complete a perfect 14-0 season…The 2022 campaign marked the program’s fifth straight unbeaten season, winning 73 consecutive decisions since January 2017…Was part of the 2020 PIAA 3 Position Smallbore, Air Rifle and Prone championship squad, helping earn the program’s fourth straight state title for 3 Position Smallbore and second consecutive championship in Air Rifle…Competed in the 2022 USA Shooting National Rifle Junior Olympic Championships program in Hillsdale, Mich., taking part in both air rifle and smallbore events…Finished ninth in the U-18 air rifle rankings with a final score of 1,217.1 (610.6 in Match 1, 606.5 in Match 2)…Placed 15th in the U-18 smallbore rankings with an aggregate tally of 1,118 (560 in Match 1, 558 in Match 2)…Took part in the 2021 National Junior Olympic Shooting Championships in Hillsdale, Mich., where he finished 23rd in the field of 114 with a total score of 1,214.2 (607.2 in Match 1, 607 in Match 2…Narrowly missed out on medalist honors as his final tally was less than three points shy of the bronze finish in the J2 category.
Personal: Born on Sept. 3, 2004...Son of Ed Kovach and Natasha Kinsinger...Has three siblings, Nate Kovach, Isabella Kinsinger and Madison Smith...Majoring in civil engineering.
- Yearly Honors
- All-OVC Air Rifle Second Team (2025)
- All-OVC Smallbore Second Team (2023, 2024, 2025)
- OVC Air Rifle All-Newcomer Team (2023)
- OVC Smallbore All-Newcomer Team (2023)
- Academic Honors
- OVC Commissioner's Honor Roll (2024-25)
- Athletic Director's Honor Roll (Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Spring 2025)
2024-25: Earned All-Ohio Valley Conference second team status in smallbore and air rifle…Competed in all 12 matches with a 574.2 smallbore average, a 581.8 air rifle average and a 1155.9 aggregate average…Fired a personal best of 582 in smallbore against Memphis (Nov. 22)...Set a new career mark in air rifle at 589 at the NCAA Qualifier Feb. 22...Set a new career watermark in aggregate scoring at the OVC Championsip (Feb. 1) at 1164.
2023-24: Earned All-Ohio Valley Conference second team status in smallbore…Competed in all 11 matches in both events, averaging a 579 air rifle score to go along with a 577 average smallbore tally…Managed a career-high score of 586 in air rifle in the Jan. 14 spring opener against Georgia Southern…Accounted for a career-best 581 points in smallbore at Jacksonville State on Nov. 17…Season-high 1,163 aggregate points occurred on Nov. 11 at Morehead State…Earned a spot on the Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association Scholastic All-American list…Was named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll for both the fall and spring semesters.
2022-23: Enjoyed an outstanding debut season, collecting three OVC postseason honors (second team smallbore, All-Newcomer air rifle, All-Newcomer smallbore)…Topped the squad in aggregate scoring twice while leading the team in smallbore points on five separate occasions and racking up a team-high in air rifle once…Saw time in all 12 matches in both air rifle and smallbore…Registered scoring averages of 581 in air rifle and 573 in smallbore…Tallied a season-best 585 in air rifle against Ole Miss on Oct. 16 and dialed up a season-high 580 smallbore score at Morehead State on Nov. 6…High aggregate score of the season (1,163 points) came on Nov. 6 at Morehead State…Was named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll for both the fall and spring semesters…Was named to the OVC Commissioner’s Honor Roll.
Before UTM: Graduated from Bedford High School and shot competitively for the Everett High School rifle team, where he competed alongside current Skyhawk teammate Jesse Chamberlain…Helped lead EHS to a pair of state championships and its third consecutive Allegheny Mountain Rifle Conference championship as a senior under head coach Coltin Rice…Was responsible for a team-high 563 in smallbore (third-best in the state of Pennsylvania) and a 384 in air rifle (seventh in the state) as EHS won the smallbore and air rifle titles at the 2022 PA Interscholastic High School 3-P Smallbore and Precision Air Rifle Championships…Fired a personal-best 289 in the league title match to help the Warriors complete a perfect 14-0 season…The 2022 campaign marked the program’s fifth straight unbeaten season, winning 73 consecutive decisions since January 2017…Was part of the 2020 PIAA 3 Position Smallbore, Air Rifle and Prone championship squad, helping earn the program’s fourth straight state title for 3 Position Smallbore and second consecutive championship in Air Rifle…Competed in the 2022 USA Shooting National Rifle Junior Olympic Championships program in Hillsdale, Mich., taking part in both air rifle and smallbore events…Finished ninth in the U-18 air rifle rankings with a final score of 1,217.1 (610.6 in Match 1, 606.5 in Match 2)…Placed 15th in the U-18 smallbore rankings with an aggregate tally of 1,118 (560 in Match 1, 558 in Match 2)…Took part in the 2021 National Junior Olympic Shooting Championships in Hillsdale, Mich., where he finished 23rd in the field of 114 with a total score of 1,214.2 (607.2 in Match 1, 607 in Match 2…Narrowly missed out on medalist honors as his final tally was less than three points shy of the bronze finish in the J2 category.
Personal: Born on Sept. 3, 2004...Son of Ed Kovach and Natasha Kinsinger...Has three siblings, Nate Kovach, Isabella Kinsinger and Madison Smith...Majoring in civil engineering.
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