10-year-old girl nabs 13-foot alligator in Texas
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From the end of its snout to the tip of its tail, the alligator that 10-year-old Ella Hawk faced down on Sept. 26 was about three times her size.
“I wasn’t nervous,” the young Texan told the Victoria Advocate.
Hawk took a crossbow shot from about 15 yards out and snared the 13-foot beast, big enough to rank No. 1 in the world in Trophy Game Records of the World’s database, according to the Advocate.
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“I have more confidence in her than probably more than 90 percent of the grown men I take on hunts"
Hawk has been hunting for a few years, her father, Tony Hawk, told the news website. But even an experienced hunter doesn’t expect to nab an 800-pound gator.
Ella’s first shot struck the creature just above his eyes.
“This first shot paralyzed and killed him,” she said.
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Just to be cautious, hunting guide Ryan Longer asked Ella to fire two more arrows and then a pistol shot at the alligator. One of the arrows and the bullet struck the animal in the exact spot as the original arrow, Longer said.
“She Robin-Hooded it,” he said.
With the record kill, Ella now stands a solid chance to repeat as the Trophy Game Records of the World Huntress of the Year award winner.
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“I was happy,” she said. “I was so excited.”
Longer called the kill the “pinnacle” of his year. He said he’s gone several years without even nabbing a 12-foot alligator, never mind a 13-footer.
“I have more confidence in her than probably more than 90 percent of the grown men I take on hunts,” Longer said.