Arizona’s Young Shotgun Shooters Continue To Rise In Clay Target Competitions
Many teams qualify to compete in the national competition in July.
Arizona – -(AmmoLand.com)- Intense wind, pouring rain, hail, a touch of sun and a perfect 100 score in skeet from intermediate shooter Tanner Bissell of the Ben Avery Clay Crushers, were some of the highlights from this year’s SCTP Commissioners’ Cup championships.
Another success story was the top score in the trap competition by varsity shooter Garret Cobbs of the Red Mountain Target Terminators, with 199 hits out of 200 targets. Clearly, Arizona’s Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) continues to foster incredible talents from young shooters from across the state.
“These kids and this program continue to set a higher bar each year, “said Ashley Lynch, shooting sports coordinator for the Arizona Game and Fish Department. “I’m completely amazed by the perfect score – that’s a first since we started the program.”
A trio of competitions was hosted for each clay target shooting discipline this spring – sporting clays, skeet and trap. Competitions began March 28 with the sporting clays event hosted in Phoenix at the Ben Avery Clay Target Center. The competition was held during the Arizona Game and Fish Department’s Outdoor Expo and drew more than 150 athletes. The skeet competition took place April 11 at the Tucson Trap and Skeet Club and drew more than 130 athletes. The competition finished up with trap on April 18 at the Ben Avery Clay Target Center, with over 155 athletes in attendance.
Each discipline is broken into five divisions: varsity, grades 9-12; junior varsity, grades 9-12; intermediate advanced, grades 6-8; intermediate entry, grades 6-8; and rookie, grades 5 and under.
Top results for all three events are:
Sporting clays:
- Varsity: Red Mountain Target Terminators, scored 238, by Van Sickle Chris, Kyle Sutter, and Quinton Moore.
- Junior varsity: Red Mountain Target Terminators, scored 210, by Kent Thomas, Fuller Stephen, and Eric Fleming.
- Intermediate advanced: Ben Avery Clay Crushers, scored 225, by Holden Huff, Perry Miller, and Tanner Bissell.
- Intermediate: White Mountain Clay Busters, scored 168, by Roman Ashcraft, Austin Moore, and Barton Logan.
- Rookie: Ben Avery Clay Crushers, scored 175, by Casey Coleman, Tim Lehmann, and Tyler Sims.
Skeet:
- Varsity: Ben Avery Clay Crushers, scored 282, by Shelby Shank, Kyle Johnson, and Lane Shank.
- Junior varsity: Red Mountain Target Terminators, scored 264, by Thomas Kent Everett, Stephen Fuller, and Eric Fleming.
- Intermediate advanced: Ben Avery Clay Crushers, scored 288, by Tanner Bissell, Holden Huff, and Perry Miller.
- Intermediate: Ben Avery Clay Crushers, scored 229, by Mitchell Jones, Cody Kime, and Zachery Clark.
- Rookie: Phantom Sure Shot, scored 216, by Hayden Hilderbrand, Nathan Moss, and Jacob Rayner.
Trap:
- Varsity: Red Mountain Target Terminators, scored 948, by Garret Cobbs, Justin Williams, Zachary Kelly, Kyle Hagberg, and Kyle Wandelear.
- Junior varsity: Ben Avery Clay Crushers, scored 875, by Andrew Witte, John Heim, Andrew Tougas, Michael Brooks, and Brandon Medina.
- Intermediate advanced: Ben Avery Clay Crushers, scored 879, by Holden Huff, Paysen Unger, Perry Miller, Trent Jordan, and McCally Gibson.
- Intermediate: Mohave Top Guns, scored 773, by Colorado Parr, Christopher Franklin, Forrest Keller, Kirsten Shaw, and Benjamin Smith.
- Rookie: Ben Avery Clay Crushers, scored 370, by Tyler Sims, Casey Coleman, Tim Lehmann, Brett Miller, and Garrett Rand.
For a complete list of all the results, visit www.azgfd.gov/sctp and click on the link for the Commissioners’ Cup results.
In addition to the awards and titles received from the Commissioners’ Cup, top performing teams qualify to represent Arizona at the 2009 SCTP National Championships held at the World Shooting and Recreational Complex in Sparta, Illinois from July 23-26. Winners from the national competition could be selected to attend an Olympic development camp in Colorado Springs, and some will go on to compete at the collegiate level.
Arizona’s SCTP continues to grow each year. There are now 17 clubs across the state dedicated to teaching boys and girls about character development, sportsmanship, responsibility, commitment, and a passion for shooting sports.
Lynch added, “I have to thank all the clubs, parents, kids and volunteers for all their dedication and hard work – without them, the program would never be this successful.”
The clubs in alphabetical order are: Arizona Dust Devils (southeast Phoenix area), Buckeye Buckshots (Buckeye area), Ben Avery Clay Crushers (Phoenix area), Central Arizona Target Shooters (Casa Grande area), Cottonwood / Verde Valley Sportsmen’s Club (Cottonwood area), Huachuca Hot Shots (Sierra Vista), Leading Edge Shooters (St. Johns area), Prescott Trap and Skeet (Prescott area), Phantom Sure Shots (west Phoenix area), Red Mountain Target Terminators (East Valley), Mohave Top Guns (Kingman area), Tucson Shooting Stars (Tucson area), Williams Busters (Williams / Flagstaff area), White Mountain Rod and Gun (Springerville / Round Valley area), Wickenburg Sportsmen’s Club (Wickenburg area), White Mountain Clay Busters (Show Low / White Mountain area), and the Yuma Young Guns (Yuma area).
Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) is a youth development program using shooting sports as a learning platform for youths in grades 12 and under. It is considered the Little League of shooting sports. The program instills many life-skills like personal values or character traits for fair play, compassionate understanding, individual responsibility, sportsmanship, self-discipline and personal commitment. SCTP is a national program administered by the Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation and facilitated locally by the Arizona Game and Fish Department. To learn more about SCTP, visit www.azgfd.gov/sctp or www.sssfonline.org.
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The Arizona Game and Fish Department prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, or disability in its programs and activities. If anyone believes that they have been discriminated against in any of the AGFD’s programs or activities, including employment practices, they may file a complaint with the Deputy Director, 5000 W. Carefree Highway, Phoenix, AZ 85086-5000, (602) 942-3000, or with the Fish and Wildlife Service, 4040 N. Fairfax Dr. Ste. 130, Arlington, VA 22203. Persons with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation or this document in an alternative format by contacting the Deputy Director as listed above.