Apparently, Farmville native Rebecca Jones isn't one to look at a scoreboard.

Jones, who won the 2008 United States Practical Shooting Championship, returned to the form of her first title recently with the 2010 championship, as well as claiming the Ladies Open National Championship.

Knowing she was shooting well, but not really knowing where she stood among the field in the USPS Championship, Jones, a 2000 graduate of Fuqua School, reclaimed the title that she narrowly missed out on last year.

To reclaim the title, she missed only one target, and beat out Jesse Abbate and defending champion Megan Francisco of Gainesville.

For Jones, her second title cemented her standing among the top shooters in the sport, and helped her get past a second-place finish in 2009.

A second place finish would be good enough for many, but not for Jones, who looked to be in good position to successfully defend her 2008 title.

“Last year, I won every match I entered, except the two Nationals,” said Jones, who began shooting with her father at the age of 14. “It was frustrating, because I had practiced more than I ever had, but I lost.”

Resisting conventional wisdom to practice even harder, Jones, who now lives in Hopewell, actually decided to cut down on her practice rounds, instead, she spent more time working with her mind.

Jones' recognition of the large mental portion of shooting would make Yogi Berra proud.

“I didn't practice as much, but I worked more on the mental aspect of everything. I basically practiced enough to keep everything fresh, and I think that worked out for the best.”

The championship performances at the two national tournaments will pay off big dividends for Jones next year.

She has been selected to the US team for next year's World Championships, which is likely to be held in Greece in October of 2011.

“I'm definitely looking forward to it,” said Jones. “Hopefully, I can keep things to where I can continue to shoot at a high level.”