Stephen Tasker Wins Archery Championship

MOUNDSVILLE, WV -- Stephen Tasker won the state championship in the high school males division in the fourth annual West Virginia Archery in the Schools Program State Tournament held March 28 in Summersville.

Tasker, the son of coach Tim Tasker, is part of the John Marshall High School Team. Other Marshall County students placed strong in the tournament as well. Cody Eller, also from John Marshall High School, placed fourth in the same competition only seven points from Tasker's winning 290 and two points from second place. Jayna Simms, who was state champion in 2007 and 2008, placed fourth in the high school female category. Moundsville Middle School student Zach Goode placed fourth in the middle school male competition.

In addition, the John Marshall High School team placed fourth in the team event; Moundsville Middle School placed fourth in its team event.

"We're thrilled that it turned out this well," Tasker said. "We're up against teams who have been doing this longer than we have and from bigger schools."

The two teams, along with teams from Sherard Middle School, Cameron High School and Cameron Middle School, were among 41 school teams from throughout the state who attended the March 28 tournament sponsored by the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. Each participating school could take 12 students to the tournament, which involved more than 400 students this year.

It was the third year that coaches Tim Tasker and Tom Melott had taken their teams to the state tournament. The Cameron teams are coached by John Smitth and Russell Dotson.

The tournament concludes the local archery program's third year. It will resume in the fall. Each school's team trains one night a week at the Moundsville Rifle and Pistol Club's indoor archery range.

The Marshall County Youth Archery Club is supported and was initiated by the Marshall County Family Resource Network through the Carol M. White Physical Education Grant, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Education Office of Safe & Drug Free Schools. The grant has been for the past three years administered locally by the Marshall County Family Resource Network.