Sheriff Congratulates Coach on GS Rifle Team Championship

Bulloch County Sheriff Noel Brown recently recognized Sgt. Jim Riggs for leading the Georgia Southern Eagles women's rifle team to a victory at the recent 2017 Southern Conference Rifle Championship held in Charleston, South Carolina.

According to the university's athletics website, www.gseagles.com, “The Eagles won the team title on the final day of competition, edging 20th-ranked North Georgia by 2 points.”

GS also placed third overall.

The team is in its fourth season of competition and Riggs has been head coach for two years. This championship, “held on the Citadel campus, saw the first SoCon Championships competition since the league ended sponsorship of the sport in 1985,” according to the site.

Georgia Southern shot nearly 9 points higher than its season average to stun the Nighthawks, who led the league with a 2301.00 average entering the championship. The Eagles' 2296 was their third-highest score high of the season.”

Courtney Weekley earned second team All-SoCon in both the smallbore and air rifle disciplines, placing ninth with the .22 and seventh in the air rifle knockout final. Tori Lewis earned first-team All-SoCon honors in air rifle with a fourth-place finish in the knockout final, the site reported.

Brown praised Riggs for his “outstanding leadership” in coaching the 2017 GS rifle team. Riggs is a member of the Bulloch County Crime Suppression Team, commander of the Sheriff's Office Tactical Team and sniper. He has been with the Bulloch County Sheriff's Office for over 15 years.

“Many deputies in the Sheriff’s Office serve the community in more ways than one can imagine,” Brown said. “Sergeant Riggs’ firearms expertise is also beneficial as he provides civilian firearms classes to citizens in the community.”

For more information on civilian firearms classes, contact the Sheriff's Office at (912) 764-8888.