COLUMBIA, MO – Former Mancos quarterback Ayden Mathews has carried his steady approach from the football field to collegiate shooting.
A Mancos High School Class of 2023 graduate, Mathews is now a junior at West Point Military Academy, where he earned all-American honors in Standard Pistol at the Collegiate Pistol National Championship held March 27-29 in Columbia, Missouri.
Mathews joined the Army cadets’ pistol team after arriving at West Point and has become a key contributor for one of the nation’s top programs. Competing under rules similar to Olympic pistol events, shooters contest three disciplines – .22 Sport, .22 Standard and Air Pistol – firing 60 rounds per event.
During the season, Mathews recorded personal-best scores of 559 in Sport and 542 in Standard out of a possible 600.
At nationals, Mathews shot a 520 in the Standard event, tying for eighth place with teammate William Krotee to earn all-American status. West Point finished second overall with a composite score of 6,386, edging Navy by 76 points but trailing six-time defending champion Ohio State, which scored 6,716.
Mathews qualified for nationals as one of eight Cadets representing West Point based on his scores throughout the season.
Although he grew up around firearms, Mathews had no competitive shooting experience before trying out for the Cadet Pistol Team as a freshman. His father, Alan Mathews, said year-round access to West Point’s shooting facilities helped accelerate his development and allowed him to compete against top collegiate shooters, including Ohio State’s Ada Korkhin, the individual all-around national champion.
Alan Mathews, who also coached his son during his high school athletic career, credited his work ethic and composure. “He’s always put in a ton of work,” he said, “and in the big moments, he’s always had that poise.”
At Mancos, Mathews earned all-state honors in football, led the Bluejays to the program’s first state title game appearance as quarterback and qualified for state in wrestling. He continues to maintain a near-perfect GPA as a systems engineering major while competing at the collegiate level.
After graduating in the spring 2027, Mathews is scheduled to serve five years as an officer in the U.S. Army.
