Natalie Samson wasn’t receiving any responses, so she stopped sending the emails.

The Gallatin High senior began expressing her interest in competing for Ohio State’s rifle team in January, but her correspondence went unanswered. In May, Samson stopped sending messages completely.

But, as it turned out, the Ohio State coach had been reading her emails and following her results at shooting competitions around the country. Ultimately, he reached out as well and invited her to campus for a visit. Samson described their connection as “super fluid and easy,” a welcomed development after believing for a time that she had missed her shot to be a Buckeye.

“I'm incredibly blessed to have somebody who is invested in me like that, and I didn't even know it then,” Samson said of OSU’s coach trackin

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