Think you can shoot? Arizona youths recently kicked major booty in Texas at the Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) Skeet and Sporting Clays National Championships. Among 19 states represented at the event by nearly 400 young shooters, Arizona came out way on top with seven winning teams; the next-closest was California, with three winning teams. Arizona had winning teams in every division of Skeet shooting and totally swept the Rookie Division in Sporting Clays.

OK, it's not just about competition; SCTP also teaches kids self-discipline and responsibility, and it gives them shots at scholarship awards. But how can you not feel proud that our own state is producing young shooters of such high caliber?

“Standout shooters are emerging all across the country,” Zach Snow of the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), which coordinates SCTP, said in a press release. “For example, in skeet, 15 competitors from 7 different states shot championship rounds of 195 or better out of 200 targets. Remember, these are just high-school students, but some have already signed college letters of intent. We also had a national shotgun coach here this weekend to observe the event and the new, young talent.”

In addition to the high school Varsity and Junior Varsity Divisions, there's an Intermediate Division for  6-8 graders and a Rookie Division for kids in grades 5 and under. The July 14-15 competition at the National Shooting Complex in San Antonio resulted in some youngsters being selected to attend an Olympic development camp, while others will go on to shoot collegiate competitions. 

Results of the 2007 SCTP National Skeet and Sporting Clays Championships 

Skeet  

Varsity Division (Grades 9 to 12)

1. California, Ink Ballers, 589 out of 600 targets (Brian Foley of Bakersfield, Talia Borg of Salinas, Cole Rommel of Cloves).

2. New York, Rochester-Brooks Elite, 586 (Kevin Corser of Holley, Alik Miller of Rochester, Scott Sobiegray of Niagra Falls).

3. Arizona, Red Mountain Target Terminators, 579 (Kyle Wandelear of Queen Creek, Patrick Wood of Scottsdale, Kaitlyn Borie of Phoenix). 

Junior Varsity Division (Grades 9 to 12)

1. Arizona, Senior Hot Shots, 578 (Brisden Eaton of Sierra Vista, Brielle Eaton of Sierra Vista, Scott Usry of Hereford).

2. Virginia, Old Forge 4-H Team, 571 (Marty Cogar of Blackstone, Tyler Scruggs of Spout Spring, Travis Wagner of Powhattan).

3. Virginia, Old Dominion 4-H Shur Shots, 570 (Lawson Philpy of Mechanicsville, Rooster Watson of Blackstone, Bobby Kline of Edinburg). 

Intermediate Division (Grades 6 to 8)

1. Georgia, Lake Oconee Shotgun Team, 568 (Troy Crisp of Buckhead, Rob Horton of Eatonton, Clay Porter of Madison).

2. Arizona, Red Mountain Target Terminators, 555 (Wesley Borie of Phoenix, Ryan Bollinger of Phoenix, Kyle Johnson of Phoenix).

3. Oklahoma, Broken Arrow Breakers, 552 (Alec Savage of Broken Arrow, Alex Drews of Broken Arrow, Zac Womack of Broken Arrow). 

Rookie Division (Grades 5 and under)

1. North Carolina, Target Terminators, 491 (Archer Price of Gastonia, Steven Allen of Kings Mountain, T. Ross Harwell of Gastonia).

2. Arizona, Ben Avery Clay Crushers, 419 (Paysen Unger of Phoenix, Dylan Karvanek of Anthem, Casey Coleman of Goodyear).

3. California, Ink Ballers, 346 (Richard Riddle of Bonsall, Arjun Hundal of Stockton).  
 

Sporting Clays 

Varsity Division (Grades 9 to 12)

1. Louisiana, Louisiana Clay Wings, 534 out of 600 targets (Caitlin Connor of Jena, Ethan Hall of Jonesboro, Joseph Dulaney of Sikes).

2. Michigan, Island Lake Whackers, 527 (Michael Cattell of Saline, Daniel Williams of Redford, Spencer Watts of Novi).

3. California, Camanche Clay Busters, 524 (Aeric Skinner of Ione, Tyler Parker of Galt, Cassandra Ding of Ione). 

Junior Varsity Division (Grades 9 to 12)

1. Florida, Sarasota Trap, Skeet & Clays, 517+shootoff (Tom Larsen of Sarasota, Rob Bilian of Sarasota, Nick Dull of Sarasota).

2. North Carolina, Ft. Bragg Rangers, 517–shootoff (Taylor Tew of Bath, Garrett Barbour of Willow Springs, Jonathan Kacmarcik of Fayetteville).

3. Texas, West Texas Sodbusters, 516 (Jonathan Royston of Seminole, Ryan Wallace of Seminole, Matt Savage of Seminole). 

Intermediate Division (Grades 6 to 8)

1. South Carolina, TKA Lions, 504 (Austin Mogy of Florence, Richmond Wilhoit of Florence, Nicholas Long of Florence).

2. Georgia, Lake Oconee Shotgun Team, 496 (Troy Crisp of Buckhead, Rob Horton of Eatonton, Clay Porter of Madison).

3. Nebraska, Heartland Claybusters, 483 (Andrew O'Connor of Greeley, Bryan O'Connor of Greeley, Garrett Irvine of Ravenna). 

Rookie Division (Grades 5 and under)

1. Arizona, Ben Avery Clay Crushers, 349 (Paysen Unger of Phoenix, Dylan Karvanek of Anthem, Casey Coleman of Goodyear).

2. Arizona, Red Mountain Target Terminators, 344 (Stephen Fuller of Phoenix, Zachary Clark of Phoenix, Cody Kime of Chandler).

3. Arizona, Huachuca Hot Shots, 309 (Sarah Click of Huachuca City, William Ponder of Sierra Vista, Dakota Saska of Hereford). 

(SCTP, for youths in grades 12 and under, is the Little League of shooting sports. Nearly 10,000 students in over 40 states competed in 2007 in trap, skeet and sporting clays. SCTP managers include the Amateur Trapshooting Association, National Skeet Shooting Association and National Sporting Clays Association. For more information visit www.nssf.org/sctp.)