The South Kitsap High School NJROTC will host a shooting competition fundraiser Jan. 9-10 to help raise money to send four members of its marksmanship precision team to regional completion in Arizona next month.

The “Wolves Battalion Marksmanship Competition” is scheduled at the National Guard Armory on Mile Hill Drive.

U.S. Navy Capt. Todd Schapler (Ret.), senior Naval Science instructor, said the fundraiser will help offset the cost of travel.

“The girls are all planning to contribute,” he said during a Jan. 9, school board meeting. “Last year they had to pay $500 each. We are trying to reduce that as much as possible.”

Schapler said there also may be some reimbursable funds from the Navy.

“They (Navy) have not committed to that yet, but typically as the number one finisher in the area, there is some money that can back this up,” he said. “We are trying to minimize the cost for the students and time away from home.”

Schapler said they looked at driving to Arizona to reduce cost, but didn’t find any great savings.

“The best option is to fly,” he said. “I will be going with the team, along with two parents.”

The school board approved Schapler’s request to attend the regional competition.

The four marksmen who advanced to the Secretary of the Navy Regional Marksman Competition are female cadets — Danielle Corpuz, Breanna Emery, Jessica Hasel and Katelynne Croston, all juniors.

The regional competition is Feb. 19-21 in Phoenix. All regional qualifiers advance to the national competition in March.

In order to win the regional competition, the cadets have to compete against other student marksmen from across the nation. The rifles used in the competition are air rifles that fire 1.77-millimeter pellets.

“These young ladies are deadly when armed with an air rifle,” Vickers said.

“Our girls have done well this year,” Schapler said.

Each shooters shoots 10 rounds each on three targets.

Schapler said a perfect individual score is 300 points, while a team can earn as many as 1,200 points.

Schapler said the team has a volunteer shooting coach — Jeff Phillips, whose daughter, Lauren, is currently on a full scholarship to the University of Nebraska.

Lauren Phillips, who is from Seabeck, captured titles at the Washington Junior Precision Air Rifle Championships and the 2013 Open Three-Position Air Rifle Sectional. She also was the Washington Girl’s Precision Junior Olympic Air Rifle champion for May 2013.

“Lauren came out and instructed the girls one night,” Schapler noted.

Senior Chief Harold Vickers, Naval Science instructor, said the competition gives all cadets a chance to receive college scholarships.

“There are schools willing to give them full scholarships,” Vickers said. “And for us not to give a 100-percent effort to get them where they need to be to take advance of it, we would be remiss.”

On Friday, a range safety brief will begin at 3 p.m. and will include a practice session for contestants. On Saturday, the competition is slated to start at 10 a.m.

Contestants will be able to fire at the same targets the cadets use and will compete as two-person teams.

Awards will be given for the best scores for individual and team shooters. The entry fee is $25 per person.

“Any time we put people on a shooting range — even with air pellet guns — we want to give them a safety brief to make sure everything is safe,” Vickers said.

Vickers and Schapler are both range safety officers.

Schapler noted the school district is supportive of the marksmanship program and he uses it as a feeder into the NJROTC.

He said ninth graders can be part of the unit, but the American Legion is sponsoring seventh and eighth graders.

“We can reach out to those seventh and eighth graders to let them come out and have a chance to shoot,” Schapler said.