Archers take aim during the State Games of Mississippi youth archery competition at the Lauderdale County Agri-Center Saturday.

As youth archery continues to blossom in popularity nationwide, so does participation by Mississippi youngsters. Schools around the state have added the sport to their list of activities, and William Carey University in 2015 began offering archery scholarships.

Area youngsters and others from around the state converged on the Lauderdale County Agri-Center to participate in the State Games of Mississippi’s Archery in Mississippi Schools’ Youth Championship archery event Saturday. Archers ranging from fourth to 12th grade were divided into four divisions for the competition. 

Archery in Mississippi Schools coach Charles Bourland commented on archery’s rising popularity around the state. 

“Some schools will have 300 kids try out for 30 positions, so they have to go through and have tryouts and weed that down,” Borland said. “It’s just growing leaps and bounds. It fits a niche. Some kids don’t play ball, and some are not musicians. So it just fits a niche that a lot of kids are growing into and liking it.”

Archers stood in the arena and peppered targets from distances of 10 and 15 feet. Each archer was given three rounds to tally scores, with the hopes of scoring a perfect 50.

Columbia Academy archers Zach Ortega and Emily Garner were among the many who traveled to Meridian for Saturday’s competition. Columbia Academy’s elementary, middle school and high school teams each won MAIS archery championships last season. 

“I’ve been doing archery for about five years now,” Ortega, a rising eighth-grader, said. “The thing I like about it is being on a team. We try to practice twice a week, but sometimes we can practice more. It takes a lot of patience and practice.”

While Garner is accustomed to competing against fellow MAIS teams, Saturday’s event allowed her to test her skills against some of the best in the state from various school classifications in a more relaxed atmosphere. 

“It’s just a good chance to do what everybody loves to do, and you’re not really pushed or anything,” said Garner, a rising ninth-grader. “It’s just to have fun and go with it.”