Nevyn Hengel of Sibley East High School of Minnesota won the crown in the final round of the USA High School Clay Target League National Championships this past weekend at the Michigan Trapshooting Association in Mason, Michigan. Hengel and fired a perfect 100-straight on Sunday. He was one of 16 athletes to shoot perfect scores in the Individual Championship Round. In the shoot-off that followed, Hengel outlasted the entire field to claim the title of National Champion. Alexis Stupi of Aquinas High School in Wisconsin earned top female honors in the nation. Stupi posted a 99 in Sunday’s final and then won in a tiebreaker.
Locally, the Abingdon-Avon/North Fulton co-op qualified for the final day of the tournament on Sunday for the first time in program history. The co-op ended the weekend in 29th place out of 469 total schools that competed. Other Illinois schools with good finishes included Parkview Christian in 12th. They were the top placing Illinois school. Illini West was 49th, Brimfield ended 69th and Canton was 71st. Individually, two A-Town/North Fulton co-op shooters qualified for Sunday’s finals. Out of 1752 individual competitors, Cael Smith finished 199th and Reid Featherlin was 316th.
The top shooter from Illinois was 8th place finisher Kolton Kidd from Sullivan. Illini West’s Bruce Finch was 137th and Canton’s Parker Derenzy was 143rd.
Over 40,000 student athletes competed on more than 2,000 high school teams in USA High School Clay Target League programs this spring. The League is the only 100% school-approved clay target shooting sport program in America. Every team must have school approval to participate. In addition, tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships are provided to qualifying seniors by the League and post-secondary institutions each year.
The League is the safest sport in school, with not one reported injury since the inception of the League in 2001. Each athlete must complete firearm safety certification before participation.
For more information on the League or results from the National Tournament, click HERE
***Photo courtesy of Abingdon-Avon/Spoon River Valley Trap Team Facebook page***
