SoCon Rifle Athletes of the Month Announced for October

SPARTANBURG, SC – Georgia Southern sophomore Emme Walrath and junior Bremen Butler were named SoCon Rifle Athletes of the Month for October.

Walrath (Kenosha, WI) earned the honor in Smallbore and Butler (Fort Wayne, IN) was honored in Air Rifle.

Walrath averaged a team and SoCon-high score of 589.500 over the first month of the season and finished October ranked eighth nationally in smallbore average. She shot a career-high 593 at Wofford on October 18 and has posted three matches with scores of 590 or higher this season. Walrath finished first in smallbore in the season opener vs. No. 12 Ohio State and Aloysius and on October 12 vs. No. 14 Army, No. 18 North Georgia, and Schreiner.

Walrath was named SoCon Rifle Athlete of the Month three times last season and was a first-team All-SoCon selection in both Smallbore and Air Rifle in 2024-25.

Butler averaged a team and SoCon-best 597.167 to start the season, ranking in the top 10 nationally in air rifle average. She posted three scores of 599 (out of 600), including back-to-back efforts in Colorado on October 25 and October 26. Her accuracy on October 26 helped Georgia Southern post a school-record of 2,393 in the discipline. Butler finished first individually that day against a field that included No. 3 Alaska, No. 7 TCU, and No. 14 Air Force.

Butler earned SoCon Athlete of the Month honors last January and is the reigning SoCon Athlete of the Year in both Smallbore and Air Rifle after terrific 2024-25 campaign.

Georgia Southern (14-2) is off to a fantastic start once again in 2025-26, rising to No. 2 in the most recent national rankings. The Eagles are back in action on Nov. 8 at No. 18 North Georgia.

Also Nominated: Alexander Pohlman (VMI), Wuyue Xie (VMI).

2025-26 SoCon Rifle Athlete of the Month (Smallbore)
October – Emma Walrath, So., Georgia Southern (Kenosha, WI)

2025-26 SoCon Rifle Athlete of the Month (Air Rifle)
October – Bremen Butler, Jr., Georgia Southern (Fort Wayne, IN)