Photo by Sam Thiel Marshall’s KayLynn Sieber poses for a photo with her family and coaches before signing her National Letter of Intent on Friday to compete in shotgun sports at William Penn University.

MARSHALL — With a quick scribble of the pen, the next step to KayLynn Sieber’s athletic career was complete. The Marshall senior signed her National Letter of Intent over the weekend to compete in shotgun sports at William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa.

Sieber said it was a surreal moment to see this day finally come.

“I’ve been waiting for a long time,” Sieber said. “It’s kind of crazy that this is happening during a pandemic, but it’s something that I’ve dreamed of since I was little and it’s been one of my goals I’ve had since I started shooting.”

Sieber, who’s been shooting for the past six or seven years, added that the Statesmen reached out to her about continuing her competitive career.

“They first contacted me and asked if I was interested in continuing my education there,” Sieber said. “I checked out their website and decided that it looked similar to home and it would be something that I would enjoy doing.”

The William Penn shotgun sports program, which is in its first season after being added to the list of intercollegiate sports last August, has had a successful fall, placing second in two competitions and first in two others.

Sieber said her coaches have had a huge impact on her during her time at Marshall, both at and away from the shooting range.

“My coaches, including my dad, they’ve probably had one of the largest impacts on my life,” Sieber said. “They’ve motivated me even outside of shooting, they motivated me in school to be the best person I could be and keep my grades up. You’re a student first before you’re an athlete.”

Sieber said she’s planning to major in secondary education. Before she takes aim for the Statesmen next fall, Sieber still has one season with the Marshall trap shooting team. She said she’s looking forward to spending time with her teammates and competing one more time at the high school level.

“Probably just competing with my teammates again and hopefully going to see old friends at shoots that we possibly have,” Sieber said.