Almost unknown to the NC student population, the Warriors varsity rifle team holds one of NC’s well-kept secrets. Shooting in the freshman cafeteria twice a week, senior precision shooter Sophia Brisbane perfects her craft and silently rises to the top of the riflery ranks. Despite no recognition of the rifle team from NC’s athletics page, Brisbane has molded into a nationally recognized prodigy. 

Brisbane, varsity lettered since her freshman year, quickly climbed the ladder through the rifle team. Since the team almost exclusively hosts Naval Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (NJROTC) cadets, her early accomplishments became well recognized and respected within the program. Brisbane now leads as the Rifle team captain for both the NC varsity squad and North Cobb-Harrison NJROTC.

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“[The rifle team] gave a presentation at my middle school, Barber, and I thought it was so cool like I thought ‘No way you can actually shoot those rifles in school.’ I remember seeing all the people on the team in their gear. I actually got into the ROTC program and told myself, ‘I’m going to make it on that team,’… A few weeks later I made it on the precision team as a freshman,” Brisbane said.

Brisbane dominates in both the classroom and JROTC. At the 2023 Riflery State Championships, Brisbane, a junior at the time, finished as a top 25 shooter in Georgia as the sole representative for the Warriors. She then moved on to compete at the Navy National championships later in the school year.  

Stopping on the floor in Anniston, Alabama, Brisbane lined up against the country’s top shooters out of the country’s 523 NJROTC programs. Brisbane punched her ticket to the next national championship after locking in the 12th-highest score at Navy Nationals.

“I think about everything I’ve already accomplished and I just remind myself that I am capable of achieving high scores. Lieutenant [Derek Easterling] used to tell us before our matches, ‘aim small miss small,’ which means the smaller your goal, the smaller a miss can be. So I think to myself, aim small, miss small, give it the best I’ve got, and everything will go well,” Brisbane said.

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After blowing Navy shooters out of the water, Brisbane marched on with other marksmen in sight. Alongside Easterling, the former head coach, the then-junior traveled to Ohio to face off in the all-branch JROTC nationals. Out of 3,500 schools and over 550,000 cadets, Brisbane placed 52 in the country and proved herself as a dominant force. 

At the 2024 Georgia High School Association (GHSA) Area Nine championship, Brisbane tied with her teammate, magnet senior Abigail Rigg, as the highest shooter in the competition. Those scores led the rifle team to a second-place finish behind the Kennesaw Mountain Mustangs. Brisbane and her team fired through the GHSA bracket, and she qualified herself for the State championship match yet again on March 15.

While she currently does not plan on shooting at the collegiate or professional level, Brisbane has left a lasting impact on the NC rifle team. Her leadership has allowed teammates to excel, including another varsity freshman, Raymond Williams, who competes alongside four other Warrior shooters. As she aims down the final stretch of her senior year, Brisbane’s legacy follows behind her, setting up the Warriors for a decorated future.