S&W’s Buckland Doubles Up At New England ICORE Regional Match

LOS OSOS, Calif. — Craig Buckland scored big at the International Confederation of Revolver Enthusiasts’ (ICORE) New England Regional picking up both the Open and Retro division titles.

The Sandisfield, Mass. resident and Team Smith & Wesson member dominated the field in the Retro division wining all 9 stages in the match and leading throughout. His final score of 314.67 outpaced his nearest competitor, Bob Powell of Springfield, Mass., by 56.84 points.

Powell claimed the second place spot with a score of 371.51. Connecticut shooters swept third through fifth place with David Dolio of Monroe taking third with 387.14, Joe Linskey of Newington in fourth with 387.75 and Robert, DeMarchi of Prospect in fifth with 410.69.

In the Open division Buckland put in another strong performance, this time giving up stage wins to two of his competitors but holding the lead throughout to match to take the win with a final score of 277.59, the second best time posted in the overall match.

Peter Enis of Pelham, N.H. took second, but not before giving Buckland a run for his money with two stages wins late in the match. Enis won stage seven and eight but could not further close the gap, finishing behind Buckland on the final stage of the match and ending 27.04 points back with 304.63.

Joe Linskey, again facing off against Buckland, managed to pick up a win on stage three but ultimately finished third with 331.26, and more than 53 points out of first.

Rounding out the top five were Fred Rios of Willimantic, Conn. in fourth shooting 409.25 and Bob Hedlund of Hampden, Mass. in fifth with 427.83.

The ICORE New England Regional Revolver Championship was held at the Hartford Gun Club, Sunday, May 2. The competition drew shooters from throughout Connecticut, as well as Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania.

The match was the fourth in a series of six regional events sponsored by Massachusetts-based firearms maker Smith & Wesson whose revolvers are widely used in competition. The next regional event is scheduled for Sunday, July 18 when the Central States Revolver Regional will take place in Buchanan, Mich.

For further information on the ICORE competition season, as well as complete match results, visit www.icore.org.