Kennedy Wells, a sharpshooter from Granbury, Texas, is set to join the UTEP rifle team in the fall of 2025. She is currently a senior at Granbury High School and will join her sister Kameron Wells, who recently joined UTEP’s rifle team in the 2024-2025 season.
As a member of Granbury High School’s varsity air rifle and Marine Corps JROTC teams, Kennedy Wells brings with her an extensive resume, built through years of competitive shooting.
She holds seven National JROTC Championships, an Orion Air Rifle League title, and the American Legion Championship. She also played a key role in helping her team secure the Junior Olympic State Championship.
Individually, Kennedy Wells’s shooting stats include a 619.9 in the 60-shot standing event and 596 in the 3×20 precision event. While Kennedy Wells finishes up her senior year in Granbury, the anticipation of her arrival is the start of a family legacy for both sisters.
Both women noted that the journey into competitive shooting began in their childhood.
“When we were little, our dad would take us to shoot. It wasn’t anything formal, and it wasn’t sharp shooting, more like small rifles,” said Kameron Wells. “But once we started in high school it was a lot more rigorous but also a lot more enjoyable because it was a competition, and it was a sport that felt identifiable and that I felt really close with.”
The Wells sisters quickly became each other’s greatest motivators.
“For me, joining the team with her (Kameron) was more about competition because I didn’t have any fellow teammates my age who I could compare myself with,” said Kennedy Wells. “I always compared myself with my sister, and I think that brought me up higher.”
Only a year apart in age, both sisters have expressed their excitement to be able to reunite, both on and off the range. “It’s always been like the two of us against the world,” said Kameron Wells. “It’s nice to be able to experience that again.”
Both sisters emphasized that the mental demands of competitive shooting have even become useful in other areas of their lives such as school.
“I think that I’ve learned a lot of mental skills that are helpful outside of shooting,” said Kameron Wells. “I noticed that like specifically with school, just being able to sit down and do my work for an hour and a half. Or if something seems frustrating, I’m more likely to take on a task rather than trying to do what’s easy because I know that I’m capable of things that I didn’t think I was capable of.”
Kennedy Wells also pointed out how the sport has allowed her to find ways to ground herself mentally. “Before matches, I’ll take time to myself, listen to my favorite music, and write little love notes in my journal,” said Kennedy Wells. While she was initially weary, Kennedy Wells said her decision to join UTEP ultimately felt like it was the right choice, seeing it as an opportunity to continue growing alongside her sister.
“I was thinking about maybe not being on the same team with her, but I don’t think I would be able to do that just because we’re super close,” said Kennedy Wells. “Being on the same team, I think we’ll bring lighthearted competition, which will make us both shoot better.”
Kameron Wells also expressed her excitement about the team’s future with her sister in the lineup. “We have a really good team dynamic right now, and I think Kennedy brings some stuff to the table that would fit in with that dynamic as well,” she said. “At the end of the day, we’re sisters so even if something doesn’t go as planned, we’re there for each other and ready to try again.”
Once graduating high school, Kennedy Wells expressed her hopes of getting an invite to shoot at the Olympics. Long term, she hopes to translate the precision and discipline of rifle sports into her future career. “I later want to become a state trooper, and I think being on the rifle team will help me with my precision if I ever need to use a gun,” said Kennedy Wells.
As UTEP awaits the future arrival of Kennedy Wells, both sisters continue to push themselves—and each other—proving that talent, dedication, and a little sibling rivalry, can lead to many extraordinary achievements.
Rumi Sevilla is a staff reporter for The Prospector and may be reached at [email protected].
