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03/17/2016 12:00 AMCamille Sahirul wasn’t planning on joining the North Haven rifle program this year. After wrapping up her freshman soccer campaign last fall, Camille was slated to go out for the indoor track squad. However, leading up to the season, rifle coach Brent Heidenis, who was also Camille’s middle school soccer coach, asked her to give the rifle team a chance.
“I went to strength and conditioning for track before tryouts and I wasn’t even going to try out for rifle team until I saw [Coach Heidenis],” says Camille. “He made a deal with me where if I didn’t like it, I could do track. He wanted me to try it.”
Camille did try her hand at rifle, enjoyed it, and wound up competing with North Haven for the entire season. Along the way, she bettered her average match score from a 169 to a 187 (out of a possible 200) and was thus presented with the Indians’ Most Improved Award at their banquet on March 9.
“I was surprised because, for tryouts, all I wanted to do was make the team. I didn’t think I’d get that far,” Camille says. “The award says that the people who try the hardest will succeed. Having my own rifle and going on my own time, plus my coaches helping me develop my position, I found what worked for me. Something just clicked.”
Camille says her father often goes to Blue Trails Range in Wallingford—which is where North Haven practices and hosts meets—and so he was very influential in her decision to stay on the squad.
“My dad has likes to go to the range and shoot a bit. I thought I’d like it. It was something I was interested in. He never brought me, but I’ve always known that he’s done it,” says Camille. “He’s been really supportive. He shoots other types of guns, but he’s helped me out with getting my equipment. Before the first match started, he made a big investment to buy my own rifle.”
Camille’s dad didn’t teach her how to shoot the rifle she uses in competition, but the fact that he bought her one allowed Camiile to put in extra hours of work on her own, which played a huge part in her progression.
“Having your own rifle is something that affects me. It’s more of getting the extra time because you’re not allowed to use their equipment on your own,” says Camille. “I can go on my own and practice. I went a few times on my own.”
Coach Heidenis was pleased to see how much Camille improved in just a few months. Not only did Heidenis see Camille’s skill-set grow, he also saw her interest in the sport grow throughout the year.
“She was interested in wanting to do much better. She asked me for some pointers for additional reading tips,” says Heidenis. “In the first match, she shot a 169, which didn’t get her into the top five [who score points for the team in a meet]. It was a respectable score for a freshman. In the next match, she improved to 187, which enabled her to post in the top five. She went on to post in the 180s in the next two matches to qualify her for varsity, where she’s the only freshman on the team.”
Camille says that all the time she spent reading up on how to improve was the biggest reason she made an impact in the Indians’ varsity lineup this winter.
“I put in extra research and time, reading and studying the sport,” says Camille. “I’ve learned a lot, if not most of my knowledge for the sport through paper.”