Alivia Spagnola harvested her first deer when she was 9 years old. She’s been hunting ever since. Spending time in the outdoors with her father, and others, is a significant part of her hunting heritage.

Last year, she booked a hunt with Bill Hill at Border Buck Outfitters in Missouri. Her, her fiancé (Nick), and soon-to-be father-in-law (Mr. Scott), went on the adventure together. The beginning of the hunt didn’t yield a buck for Spagnola, but it did for others, including Scott. Then, on Nov. 19, 2024, everything aligned for Spagnola, too.

Fog filled the air, and dew glistened on blades of grass all around. Mr. Scott, who’d already shot his deer, was in the blind, too. They scanned for movement. Soon after daylight, several does exited the woods to the right of the blind. Quickly, they faded from view.

Shortly after 7 a.m., Spagnola looked to her right. Much to her surprise, a massive whitetail appeared over the rise. She whispered to Mr. Scott, and he turned to see the big deer marching in their direction.

Within seconds, she opened the window, steadied the gun, and leveled the crosshairs on the vitals. The buck stopped, turned to its right, and looked toward Spagnola’s position. 

“In this moment, the air was so still,” she said. “The sun had just fully fixed right in the very spot the buck was standing.”

With a good 80-yard shot opportunity, she squeezed the trigger, and the 7mm-08 sounded off. The deer bolted, but didn’t show signs of being hit. It didn’t buckle, jump, kick, or anything. It didn’t even show signs of blood on its side. Deer ran everywhere, so it was difficult to keep track as it ran off. They managed to mark where he jumped the fence, though.

“The adrenaline shakes worsened, and tears shed,” Spagnola said. “I thought I hadn’t hit him or that I made a bad shot. The doubt started to build and set in that I missed this opportunity.”

Mr. Scott, Nick, her father, and others, calmed her down. They reflected on the shot. She knew the crosshairs were right on the vitals. She thought it was a perfect shot. Even so, she recalled how the deer acted post-shot, and lost confidence.

After 40 minutes of waiting, and after everyone arrived — including Bill — the search party looked for the deer. They found blood and then worked up to the fence where the buck jumped over it. The blood trail wasn’t good, so they regrouped and started over. Moving slowly, they followed the sparse blood trail.

“Liv, there’s your deer,” Bill said.

Tears and emotions flowed as they walked up to the huge whitetail. “There he laid under a tree sapling and his antlers wrapped in the barbwire fence,” Spagnola said. “Blood painted the green leaves of the sapling and the brown leaves that lay around him. It turns out, he never jumped the fence, and the shot was straight through the vitals.”

They celebrated, made phone calls, and ate Reese’s Cups (a celebratory tradition passed down from her father). They returned to the lodged and shared the story with others. 

“To have the opportunity to harvest this beautiful animal is absolutely incredible,” Spagnola said. “It is a story that I continue to tell others and eventually my own children.

“I am so grateful for my dad,” Spagnola continued. “If it wasn’t for him, I would not have the passion for hunting that I do now. I am forever grateful for our hunting memories and all of the knowledge he has given me. To be able to join a family who enjoys the outdoors as much as I do is so very special.”

According to the outfitter, Bill, the deer was a local legend. In a previous season, the deer was shot but wasn’t wounded badly. Last season, Bill had the deer at 7 yards with bow in hand but had no shot. Two days before Spagnola shot the buck, a neighboring hunter shot at the deer five times, and two shots connected, but didn’t kill the brute. As a result, the buck was named “Warrior.”

“None of this would have been possible without Bill at Border Buck Outfitters,” Spagnola concluded.

The deer is guesstimated to be 6 ½ years old. Teeth were sent off to verify. Regardless, it was a great hunt. It scored 198 2/8 inches (gross).