Goodwin's Dedication Looks To Guide Rebels In 2011

Sept. 30, 2011

By: John Holt

OXFORD, Miss. - Thirteen months ago, Ole Miss rifle shooter Rena Goodwin, arrived in Oxford as an 18-year old freshman uncertain on how her adjustment to the collegiate level would transpire.

Transitioning from residing in Massachusetts, living 25 hours away from home and having been home schooled her entire life, Goodwin knew going to school in Mississippi wasn't a common thing for someone like her.

"It was huge adjustment," Goodwin said reflecting back on her arrival to Ole Miss. "To be honest, when I started school and the season, I think I was running off pure adrenaline because I was so ready to go and I didn't know what to expect. I only knew that I wanted to do well."

However just over one year later, Goodwin, now a sophomore, has no regrets and is predicted to be a key contributor to this year's Ole Miss rifle squad which earned a No. 8 preseason national ranking in the 2011 Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association preseason poll.

"We're all really expecting Rena to make big improvements from last year," assistant coach Natasha Dinsmore said. "Being a freshman last year, we switched her to a new rifle and she was new to everything, even the college experience in general."

Goodwin, who prior to shooting was a gymnast, took interest in the sport of rifling at the age of 14, due in large part, to her father Keith, who was a member of a local gun club.

Following her first year of competing in club rifle, Goodwin realized she wanted to pursue the sport at the collegiate level.

As a freshman last season for the Rebels, Goodwin posted a season average of 566.9 in air rifle and a 554.8 average in smallbore competition.

But when you ask Goodwin's teammates and coaches about her, there's one thing in which they all agree on: that being, her passion and work ethic toward the sport.

At the end of last season, her resilience and work ethic were both rewarded as she earned the team's most dedicated honor.

"Rena is by far the hardest worker on the team," Dinsmore said. "She's always focused and always looking on finding something to improve upon. Her dedication and her work ethic are really going to pay off this season,"

Goodwin believes her work ethic comes from her family roots.

"My mom and dad's parents came over here to the United States from Sicily with nothing," Goodwin said. "They both came over here and made something out of nothing. That's the reason I'm where I am today. I was always taught that if you wanted something you needed to be the one to go out and get it. No one else is going to get it for you or hand anything to you."

While her freshman season had its ups and downs, this season Goodwin has set a new individual goal for herself.

"This year my major goal is that I just want to get out there and perform well," she said. "I really want to work on my performance aspect versus the score and the outcome aspect."

This past weekend, the Rebels hosted their first match of the 2011 season, and Goodwin proved that her sophomore campaign could quite possibly be a breakout one for her as she recorded her personal best in smallbore competition scoring a 567.

While Goodwin did display a strong opening season performance, she knows there still are several remaining items she needs to improve on.

She lists that her confidence in shooting and trusting herself are the two primary areas of which she hopes to show progress this season.

Aside from school and rifling, Goodwin enjoys the outdoors, watching sports and running her dog.

She admits that when she graduates in 2014, she hopes to still have a hand in the sport she's grown to love. However, she doesn't know yet to what degree that will be at this time.

But one thing is obviously clear.

With Goodwin's hard work and special dedication, the answer to that question should be simple for her whenever the appropriate time comes.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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