New Kalamazoo College kicker goes viral with 55-yard field goal
KALAMAZOO, MI – Madison Barch secured a spot on the Kalamazoo College football team next year because she can kick the ball.
And for anyone who doubts the Utica High School senior could do the job as the Hornets’ first soccer player, she posted a 55-yard response on social media.
With a 15 mph breeze blowing across the field, Barch hooked up on a 55-yard basket, which she posted to her Twitter account on Sunday.
Since then, the original clip has garnered over 24,000 likes, while also receiving attention from ESPN’s SportsCenter and former NFL punter Pat McAfee.
According to a story about Barch’s commitment to K-College by Jacob Herbert of C&G News, she started playing football in seventh grade and opened her senior season with Utica by scoring the game-winning basket in a 37-34 victory over Bloomfield Hills.
A spokesperson for the Kalamazoo College athletics department recently confirmed that Barch’s arrival at the Hornets’ fall camp would make her the first woman to adjust to the Division III program, but it will be nothing again for the talented spot kicker, who was the only girl to participate in last summer’s Ray Guy Pro Kicker camp, where she signed up an average kick-off distance of 51.50 yards and a long one of 57.
Her average kick-off time at camp was 3.09 seconds, going 3.53, and she scored 90 percent of her field goals.
As a punter, Barch’s average boot covered 34.29 yards with an average hang time of 3.76 seconds. His long punt at camp was 38 yards and the longest suspension time was 4.16 seconds.
Kalamazoo College kicks off their 2020 football season on Saturday, September 5 at home against Oberlin.
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