The first weekend in May, four of the SCTP’s National Team members – AJ Nomina, Mark Shields, Madeleine Taylor, and Tyler Thiede – met coaches Terri DeWitt and Joe Buffa in Colorado Springs for the third National Team training camp this year. This camp was intended to coincide with the Colorado State Junior Olympic (JO) Championships in order to offer National Team members an opportunity to compete in a training match.
Not only was this particular camp an opportunity to train on the home range of USA Shooting’s National JO Championships as well as the SCTP’s International National Championships, it gave National Team members a chance to test their training under true match conditions. Coach DeWitt explains, “You can never quite replicate match pressure in a training environment, which is what makes ‘practice’ matches like these so valuable.”
The results speak for themselves. All four SCTP National Team athletes made the finals in their respective events and two of them came away with medals; AJ Nomina took home a Bronze medal in Skeet and Tyler Theide battled his way to the Silver medal in Trap.
2018 national team members receive ongoing coaching in the international shooting disciplines, a USA Shooting jacket, paid fall selection match fees and ammo, along with an SCTP National Team vest, five cases of NobelSport Quattro Finest International ammunition and more!
The Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) would like to welcome William ‘Bernie’ Till as the latest Regional Field Representative to join the SCTP national staff!
Bernie got his start in youth clay target sports in 2009 as the coach of the Heathwood Hall Sporting Clays team in support of his sons shooting sports interest. He left Heathwood to take on the volunteer role of youth programs director at Mid Carolina Gun Club in Orangeburg SC and starting the Mid Carolina 4-H program. He became a SCTP head coach in 2011 for the Mid Carolina Young Guns SCTP team.
Bernie led the effort to bring SCTP back to SC in 2013 after a 2-year hiatus by volunteering to serve as State Advisor for SC. In 2017, he built a partnership with 4-H teams in South Carolina that has resulted in several new SCTP teams, more shooting opportunities for kids and has seen SCTP participation triple in the last year.
Bernie is a 4-H State Instructor and has certified over 200 coaches in support of his passion for promoting youth shooting by equipping new teams with qualified coaches.
Bernie will be working primarily from his home office in Orangeburg, South Carolina supporting the southeast states including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina.
A letter from Briley Regarding 4H State & SCTP Nationals Pre Order
Hi Everyone!!
I hope this letter finds all the kiddos and families happy and healthy!!
It’s that time of year again to begin preparing for the Texas State 4-H Championships in San Antonio and SCTP Nationals in Marengo. This year is busier than ever for Briley, especially our travel and shoot schedule.
This year, TX State 4-H and SCTP Nationals are same week in July. This year….again….we would like to try pre-ordering chokes and selected accessories to be picked up at each event. The “Buy One Choke, Get One Free” is always very popular and we want to do our best to be prepared when you walk into our stores.
Inventory will be VERY limited at each event. On a little more serious note, the “Buy One, Get One” is a once a year sale we love to do for the kids. We feel very strongly that the youth is the future of shooting sports and hunting and we are committed to helping in any way we can. With that being said, this sale in San Antonio and Marengo, is for 4H & SCTP members only. We would appreciate keeping this relationship between Briley, SCTP, and 4H honest and a respected program. All the kids and their families have always been top notch, polite, grateful, and truly a pleasure to do business with.
Briley would also like to thank all the parents, coaches, and chaperons for your hard work and commitment to the kids and this sport. Without you, this week of shooting would not happen.
If you have any questions or need further information please contact our sales team in Houston.
Order Information – Chokes, Wrenches, and Accessories
We will need the following information emailed, mailed, faxed, or called into Briley.
Name
Address
Phone #
Make, model, and gauge of the gun(s)
Please specify the style of chokes you want. i.e. silver extended, black extended, spectrum (color bands), ported, titanium, etc. Then…list the constrictions (sizes) you want. i.e. SK, IC, LMOD, etc.
If you need help selecting your chokes, please feel free to contact any one our sales reps and we will be happy to help.
Please include any wrenches, grease, choke cleaning brushes, snap caps, or any other accessories you would like to purchase.
Please call Briley @ 1-800-331-5718 to place your order with any sales rep or email hannah@briley.com.
Very important…. ALL ORDERS MUST BE PAID FOR AND PICKED UP IN SAN ANTONIO & MARENGO.
SHIPPING IS NOT AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDERS.
Thank you for your understanding.
Thank you so much for your continued support and use of Briley products. We are proud to be a part of the SCTP & 4H shooting sports!!
We look forward to seeing each and every one of you in July.
While thousands gathered for the NRA annual convention in Dallas on May 4-6 to pontificate about firearms, about 300 sixth through twelfth graders comprising two dozen youth shotgun teams convened at Ellis County Sportsman’s Club just 20 miles away for the Scholastic Clay Target Program’s 2018 Texas State Shotgun Championships. “Ellis County is one of the few venues in North Texas that can handle a tournament this size,” noted Coach Rich Keele. “For anything bigger, we pretty much have to use the National Shooting Complex in San Antonio.”
More than 70,000 targets and 3,000 boxes of shotgun ammo decided individual, squad, and team state champions in American Skeet, American Trap, and Sporting Clays. According to longtime supporter Bill Alford whose son shot on the first national champion squad for the Eagles, “The growth of youth shotgun sports is incredible. You know it’s grown when parents and coaches get frustrated because all the shoots fill up on the first day of registration.”
Hundreds of medals, trophies, and belt buckles were awarded to athletes in grades 6-12 competing in their respective classifications. For most, this was the pinnacle of their season having battled the elements throughout the 6-month league which started back in November. Many will compete in the Lower Midwest Regional Tournament in San Antonio June 16-17 along with athletes from OK, AR, and LA. A few will go on to represent Texas at the SCTP American Team Nationals July 18-22 in Marengo, OH versus 3,000+ shooting athletes from across the nation. Among the Eagles who have already qualified for the All-State-Team representing Texas at Nationals are Rob Beach (Trap), Trevor Christensen (Skeet), Sean Packer (Sporting Clays), and Grant Stelmach (Sporting Clays). Beach and Packer also qualified as All-Americans in Sporting Clays, while Morgan Scott and Brandon Stone qualified as All-Americans in Skeet.
The Allen Eagles Competitive Shooting Team won the High Overall Team Championship by a margin of 42 targets out of 1,500 over the Southlake Carroll Target Program who earlier this year placed 1st in the North Texas League by 29 targets over the Eagles out of 4,500 shot in 9 league events.
Also in the running for the HOA team state crown, 1 target separated 3rd place Red Oak High School Shotgun Team from 4th place Grace Cougars of Tyler with newcomer Keller High School Clay Target Team in 5th place by just 4 more targets.
Allen and Southlake tied for the Skeet team award. But, Allen got the win in a shootoff with Southlake veterans Nicholas Godfrey and Tyler Hall demonstrating exceptional sportsmanship. The Eagles took the Sporting Clays team award by 3 targets over the Dragons. And Pleasant Grove Shotgun Club bested Allen by 1 target out of 500 for the Trap Team Championship.
The level of competition just keeps getting tougher. Every year, there are more and better teams competing. “Every year, we graduate a bunch of great shooters and fool ourselves into thinking we’ve seen the best of the best. But each year, a new crop of young shooters step up to the plate and raise the bar,” noted Eagles head coach Jason Anderson. “We just reload.”
Allen had a host of individual and squad award winners too!
SKEET Team: GOLD-Trevor Christensen, Morgan Scott, Nick Welch Varsity Squad: BRONZE-Morgan Scott, Robert Beach, Sean Packer Varsity Lady: GOLD-Morgan Scott, BRONZE-Bailey Finnelly JV Squad: Trenton Christensen, Meredith McCarty, Garrett Koch Intermediate/Advanced Squad: SILVER-Owen Lyons, Riley Showah, Brandon Martin Intermediate/Advanced Athlete: GOLD-Owen Lyons Intermediate/Entry Squad: GOLD-Nick Welch, Dylan Little, Tyler Stelmach Intermediate/Entry Athlete: GOLD-Nick Welch, SILVER-Dylan Little
TRAP Team: SILVER-Robert Beach, Bailey Finnelly, Sean Packer, Morgan Scott, Kaleb Carper Varsity Squad: GOLD-Robert Beach, Bailey Finnelly, Morgan Scott, Jackson Harper, Jake Lundberg & SILVER-Sean Packer, Kaleb Carper, Thomas Keele, John Lyons, Grant Stelmach Varsity Lady: SILVER-Bailey Finnelly, BRONZE-Morgan Scott JV Squad: SILVER-Ellie Moeller, Oliver Harrison, Presli Richmond, Hunter Rhodes, Joseph Showah JV Lady: BRONZE-Ellie Moeller Intermediate/Entry Squad: GOLD-Dylan Little, Nick Welch, Tyler Stelmach, Brett Windham, Luc Tomczak & SILVER-Austin Hodge, Alex Martin, Connor Bowles, Alex Bull, Samantha Gott & BRONZE-Hudson Cooper, Logan Martinez Intermediate/Entry Athlete: BRONZE-Hudson Cooper Intermediate/Entry Lady: BRONZE-Samantha Gott
SPORTING CLAYS Team: GOLD-Sean Packer, Grant Stelmach, Thomas Keele Varsity Squad: GOLD-Sean Packer, Grant Stelmach, Thomas Keele Intermediate/Advanced Squad: SILVER-Owen Lyons, Brandon Martin, Riley Showah Intermediate/Advanced Athlete: GOLD-Owen Lyons Intermediate/Entry Squad: GOLD-Nick Welch, Dylan Little, Tyler Stelmach & BRONZE-Austin Hodge, Brett Windham, Luc Tomczak Intermediate/Entry Athlete: SILVER-Nick Welch
HIGH OVER ALL
H.O.A. Team: GOLD-Allen
Skeet: Trevor Christensen, Morgan Scott, Nick Welch, Grant Stelmach, Sean Packer
Sporting Clays: Sean Packer, Grant Stelmach, Thomas Keele, Kaleb Carper, Nick Welch
Trap: Robert Beach, Bailey Finnelly, Sean Packer, Morgan Scott, Kaleb Carper
Five years ago seems like so long ago for Jack Gerstmeier. At the age of 10 1/2, he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and celiac disease. Type 1 diabetes means that your pancreas no longer produces insulin that turn sugar and carbs into energy your body can use. It meant from now on he would require at least 4 shots a day to control his blood sugar for this chronic disease.
The diagnosis took a toll on him both mentally and physically. He quit playing volleyball and basketball because it was very hard to control his diabetes early on. He was at the age where hormones and growth spurts wreak havoc on normal middle school boys, but trying to control blood sugars while your body begins that process is a challenge all in itself. Sports were no longer an important part of his daily life.
Gradually things improved as he adjusted to his new normal. A year into his diagnosis he began receiving insulin through an insulin pump, which eliminated the 4 insulin shots each day. Things were slowly getting easier.
Knowing how important it is to be active and involved he was approached by his dad and asked if he had any interest in trap shooting. His grandparents had been league trap shooters at the Waukesha Gun Club while his dad was growing up. He was excited to give it a try. He was ready to find something he could be good at with or without diabetes.
Fast forward 3 years, Jack is now a varsity trap shooter for Poplar Creek Claybusters. He started at the intermediate level while in 8th grade. He traveled throughout southeastern Wisconsin shooting in tournaments and improving his skills that season. On June 26, 2016, he went to Rome, Wisconsin to shoot in the SCTP State Trap Tournament. He participated in the 21yd intermediate handicap and took 3rd place. This was a huge accomplishment for him in year one.
While continuing to shoot trap for a second season, he was asked to tryout for a pistol and rifle team. He joined Lake Country Action Shooters (LCAS) in late May, 2017. He immediately began practices and on June 11, joined LCAS at State in Sturgeon Bay, WI. This would be his first pistol and rifle competition and the weather provided him a great challenge. Many of the teams opted to wait out the storm. Jack’s coach insisted they persevere, if they could shoot in this they could shoot in anything. The team walked away with two 1st place ribbons for center fire pistol and optic rifle. It was quite an accomplishment in the few weeks he was with the team.
Just a short 6 weeks after state, LCAS traveled to SASP Nationals in Marengo, Ohio. With a few additional weeks of practice for Jack, his JV squad walked away with three 1st place ribbons in optic rifle, iron rifle, and center fire pistol and a 2nd place in 1911. He returned to Marengo again in October this time as a member of the varsity squad and came home with four first place medals.
To improve upon his success from the year before with Poplar Creek, Jack’s JV Squad took 1st place in the NWCTC Eastern Division Conference. Jack continued to improve, putting up some personal bests.
With all the successes with his shooting teams last season, in August, 2017 Jack received the “artificial pancreas”. This is still not a cure for type 1 diabetes, but definitely a game changer for him. His continual blood sugar roller coasters have almost disappeared. His new pump, regulates his blood sugar with the use of a continuous glucose monitor that gives his pump blood sugar readings every 5 minutes and decides to give or not give him insulin based on the numbers. He is finally starting to feel “normal” again, thanks to the latest and greatest in medical technology.
He is off to a great start again this year with both Poplar Creek Claybusters and Lake Country Action Shooters. For the first time in 2 years, he has had two 24/25 rounds this week. He is aiming for that 25/25 perfect round. He continues to work on reducing his time with pistol and rifle as he shoots at the varsity level this year. He looks forward to finishing this season strong in both disciplines, while looking ahead to the future. He continues to manage type 1 diabetes through technology and self discipline and is not going to let it stop him from achieving his goals.
Jack credits the SCTP and SASP organizations for providing alternative sports for today’s youth. The coaching he has received in both disciplines and his continued development has given him a new level of confidence. His coaching and training along with his new pump allow him to walk up to the line not as a diabetic but as a competitor just like everyone else.
There were stiff winds and even stiffer competition at the SCTP 2018 Southeastern Regional Championship April 20-22 at the Forest City Gun Club in Savannah. Over 300 youth shooters from 24 teams across the Southeast participated.
The Trap event on Saturday was shot in 20+ mph winds, but these young shooters were not deterred. Nash Sinclair of Lake Oconee took the title followed by a tie between Central Georgia teammates Alexis Eidson and Bradley Defore. Eidson was Lady Champion followed by a tie between her teammate Delaney Calhoun and Reanna Frauens.
The Central Georgia Elite Shooters team, coached by Chad Eidson, broke 1,391 out of 1,500 birds to win over all the youth shooting teams of boys and girls from third grade through college. The Lake Oconee Shotgun Team came in second place (1,376), followed by the Worth County Shotgun Team (1,352) in third. Defending SCTP National Champions Young Guns at Quail Creek from Okechobee, Florida finished fourth, and Savannah-based Forest City Juniors led by Douglas Williams and Colin Davis finished fifth.
Young Guns, Lake Oconee, Forest City and Central Georgia represent 4 of the top 5 winning teams at the 2017 SCTP National Championship out of over 200 teams nationwide.
Andrew Weiche and Tate Skipper, both of Macon, led the charge for Central Georgia Elite and ended up tied for the High Over All individual honor which was settled by a shoot-off that went Weiche’s way. Ambus Powell of the Worth County Shotgun Team finished third overall.
Reanna Frauens of Coral Gables, Florida, won Ladies HOA shooting for the Young Guns at Quail Creek followed by Alexis Eidson and Dallas Ward for Central Georgia Elite.
Men’s Sporting Clays ended in a tie between perennial Georgia powerhouses Aaron Copelan of Lake Oconee and Kevin Bandt of the Brookine Top Shots. Copelan won the shoot-off to take the title. Andrew Weiche finished 3rd. The Ladies sporting champion was Central Georgia’s Alexis Eidson followed by Reanna Frauens. Ashley Blenker of Quail Creek and Camryn McCraney of Etowah Valley tied for 3rd.
Sunday’s Skeet event ended with three perfect scores of 100 by Tate Skipper, Reanna Frauens and Buford’s Camryn McCraney, who shoots for the Etowah Valley Mambas. Skipper eventually won the event via shoot-off, and then Frauens defeated McCraney to win the Ladies Division. Lake Oconee Collegiate shooter Tyler Hyatt also shot a perfect 100 straight.
Forest City Gun Club has a busy competitive calendar in 2018. In addition to this SCTP Regional, they hosted the 2018 NSSA Krieghoff MASTERS Skeet tournament May 3-6. In June, they will hold the Georgia State Sporting Clays Championship and in September, they will host the NSCA Southeastern Regional Championship for a field of over 600 shooters.
Due to the extremely large volume of teams and coaches trying to squad for the 2018 National Championships, we have decided to implement a new registration path this year to take some pressure off coaches competing for slots and shooting times when general online registration is open and available on June 1st.
This year, we are trying something new.
We are going to allow teams to “pre-squad” for the SCTP National Championships.
Here’s how it will work:
Teams must send via US Postal Service to the Burlington, WI address provided, a filled out “Nationals pre-squad form” available on our Forms and Handbook section of our website. You will need to fill out a form for each team “scenario”……meaning, the dates and times for each squad you want entered. These squads must be “pre-built” in your team’s page and be built for each discipline. Date for SCTP to receive these forms is Tuesday, May 15. Do not send prior to that date, entries received with a prior date stamp will not be accepted!!
This form must be sent in with payment either by credit card or by check, no payment sent in with forms will result in no squads entered for that team. These funds are “nonrefundable”!! If you pay for 15 athletes and only 12 show up, the other 3 athlete’s fees are not returned. A team may change shooters or resquad them before nationals, that is no problem.
We will take the presquad forms in the order they are received by us from the US Postal service and in order of the time stamp on the envelope. No dropping off of forms will be allowed and PLEASE, do NOT send these forms with a signature required. They will be put at the end of the forms received that day or the next day if they are sent with a signature required……
Squading will be confirmed and posted prior to the opening of the National Championship squading on June 1st. Please give us 3 options or “scenarios” for your teams squads as many slots will fill up fast. See the form and instructions for more details regarding squading for the SCTP National Championships! Hope to see you all in Marengo, Ohio July 14-21!
New from the 2017 shooting season and continued for the 2018 season will be the SCTP “All State Team”. This team will be comprised of athletes finishing in the top 5 positions at their respective state shoots in 16 yard singles Trap, American Skeet and Sporting Clays, male and female athletes combined and regardless of their team affiliation!
To be eligible for the All State Team, athletes must:
Attend their SCTP state championship event(s)
Attend the SCTP National Championships in Marengo, OH
Those top 5 athletes (in each discipline from their state shoot) attending the SCTP National Championships being held in Marengo, Ohio July 14-21 2018 will have their scores count towards their “All State Team” score for that discipline! They will not shoot independently of their team and squad however, we will just use the scores shot at nationals for their “All State Team” score. Any ties will be shot off as a squad! The top 5 athletes will be selected across all age divisions and categories in grades 12 and under only.
Special prizes will be issued for the top 3 states (athletes) by order of finish and will be presented at the awards ceremonies at the tournament. These will all be 5 person squads.
If an athlete that finishes in the top 5 (at their state shoot) does not attend the national championships, we will then take the next competitor in line that will be attending nationals in July! That could be a 6th place state finisher, 7th place or so on down the line.
We will have more criteria posted on our website soon in the SCTP Forms and Handbook section.
If you have any other questions about this great opportunity for our athlete’s, please contact the Directors of Development, Chet Tuinstra or Carlton Nether or contact National Director, Tom Wondrash.
The Scholastic Clay Target Program would like to announce the continued support from RE Ranger. Randolph, the maker of the RE Ranger line of competitive shooting eyewear, will continue to support the SCTP at the Gold Level ($15,000+) for the 2018 Shooting year! Randolph makes several styles of eyewear that fit the clay target enthusiasts including the Ranger Falcon and Ranger Falcon Pro’s. In its second year “The Ranger Phantom” is a 3 lens set w/frame kit that will surely not disappoint the athletes and their parent’s pocket books! These are currently available on the SCTP’s online store for their athletes and teams!
“RE Ranger is delighted to sponsor the SCTP program for our 6th straight year.”Said Sarah Waszkiewicz, General Manager of RE Ranger Sales “We couldn’t be prouder to support a program that encourages the next generation of shooters to participate in such a fun sport that educates and provides important life skills to the youth. More importantly we get to see the benefits of the SCTP program for these kids at various levels and we couldn’t be happier to support the cause!”
“Randolph/RE Ranger have been great partners/sponsors of SCTP!” Said Tom Wondrash, SCTP’s National Director. “The RE Ranger line of shooting glasses are a super fit for our athletes, more and more of them are identifying with their brand! We continue to be encouraged by the support and confidence that Sarah and her team put in us and the SCTP!”
Are you or your company interested in supporting the largest competitive youth shooting program in the world? Download our 2018 media guide for all sponsor levels or contact Tom Wondrash, SCTP National Director at twondrash@sssfonline.com
were slowly getting easier.
New from the 2017 shooting season and continued for the 2018 season will be the SCTP “All State Team”. This team will be comprised of athletes finishing in the top 5 positions at their respective state shoots in 16 yard singles Trap, American Skeet and Sporting Clays, male and female athletes combined and regardless of their team affiliation!
