Northside’s Huber and Brewer finish careers by winning All-Bi-City awards

The year didn’t end with a state championship for the Northside rifle team like it did a year ago, when it captured the crown over East Coweta at Fort Benning.

Still, the Patriots were the unquestioned class of the area, placing second at state and actually finishing with a slightly higher score than a year ago.

In his last season at the helm for Northside, Richard Brewer earned Ledger-Enquirer All-Bi-City Coach of the Year honors and, for the second year in a row, Northside’s Shelby Huber claims at least a share of shooter of the year honors.

This year, Huber’s average of 292.11 was the best in the area. He shot a 288 at state to help Northside place second and had a top score of 295 for the year. He was disappointed about falling short of a second straight title, which would have been the fifth in school history, but felt like his and the team’s season was an improvement on 2015.

“We had a great season this year,” he said. “We started higher at the beginning, and East Coweta was our No. 1 threat. We beat them by one last year, and they just hit a ridiculous number at state.”

That ridiculous number was a 1,168, six points above the previous state record. Northside shot a 1,155, only seven shots behind the previous state record but 13 behind the champions. But that didn’t bother Huber.

“We couldn’t have been happier with what we shot,” he said. “It was three points higher than last year. I shot higher, I improved my numbers every year.”

That improvement was a product of the commitment Huber has given to the sport over his time in high school. He began competing in middle school and in just about five short years became talented enough to have a chance at competing at the next level.

Huber will continue competing in riflery at the college level, having signed on at Division I Murray State. Despite having a college scholarship in hand, he said that his work is only just beginning. He said he has to continue to work hard at his craft to keep up with the talent at the college level, constantly trying to improve in smallbore, 3X20 and 60 shots standing competition.

“Every couple days at least three days a week, I’m at Fort Benning training,” he said.

Huber is not the only one who is leaving Northside. Brewer, after leading the program since its inception, will no longer be the coach of the program as he retires from his senior Army instructor and rifle coach positions, but is going out with a strong campaign.

He led Northside to its fourth state title in 2015 and this year finished second overall. He led the Patriots to championships in 2005, 2006 and 2007, and they reached the pinnacle again in 2015.

In addition to his leadership of the Northside program, he has contributed to the sport on a state and local level during his time in the area.

This story was originally published May 31, 2016 at 9:25 PM with the headline "Northside’s Huber and Brewer finish careers by winning All-Bi-City awards."