Chester County, Jefferson County, and Morristown Winners at Tennessee SCTP State Trapshooting Championships
The Tennessee Wildlife Federation’s (TWF) Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) held its State Trap Championship over the past two weekends at Nashville’s Tennessee Clay Target Complex. State Champion teams were crowned in four divisions, as the “Super Bowl” of Tennessee youth trapshooting completed its sixth year.
By competing in the Tennessee State Championship, the 785 competitors qualified to compete in the Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) National Championship in Sparta, Ill. in August. In previous years Tennessee teams have faired well at the national championships having won three titles over the past three years.
Winning 2007 state titles were teams from Jefferson County (Intermediate Division), Morristown (Varsity Division) and a most impressive Chester County program with two of the four overall titles (Junior Varsity and Rookie Divisions).
Started in Tennessee in 2001, SCTP has seen phenomenal growth. Just sixteen young shooters participated during the program’s first year, growing to nearly 2,000 participants this year. Tennessee has more SCTP shooters than any other state in the United States.
“The success of Tennessee’s program can be attributed to strong support from TWF, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA), the National Rifle Association (NRA) and an impressive network of dedicated parents, youth and volunteers,” said Chad Whittenburg of the TWF, which runs Tennessee SCTP.
The program is designed to instill in participants safe firearms handling, responsibility, leadership, teamwork, and academic excellence. It has also become a bridge for youth in becoming future outdoor enthusiasts.
Winning the state title in the Varsity division were the Morristown Deadeyes, from Morristown, TN, who combined hit 962 of a possible 1,000 targets. Leading the way was Thomas Kelley, who hit 198 of 200 targets. The winning team also included Todd Lamb, Mathew Smith and Allen Parker of Morristown, and Ryan Parks of Bulls Gap, TN. The Morristown squad is coached by five time state title coach Rocky Parks.
The Varsity division fielded two athletes with scores of 200/200. Carson Rider of McKenzie, TN and Mark Filley Jr., of Crossville, TN shot perfect scores.
In the Junior Varsity division, the team from Chester County placed first with a 952 total score. The team included Grant Hemby, John Moore, Trevor Thomas, William Bishop and Cody Cooper.
“Working together…that’s what this is all about,” said Chester County coach Janice Cooper of Henderson. “They’ve got the biggest hearts you can think of, and they’ve pulled for each other this whole season.”
In the Intermediate division, the Jefferson County Colonels took their second straight title with a 954 total score. Leading the way with a pair of 192’s were Alex Swanger and Hunter Rich. The team also includes Chase Rich, Michael Hammer and Brant Stookeberry.
In the Rookie division, the Chester County Rookies again placed first with 924 out of 1000 targets. In a sport that is many times decided by one or two targets or shoot-offs, the 2006 National Champion team from Chester County won by an impressive 122 target margin over the second place McKenzie Rebel Rookies. The team of fourth and fifth graders includes Jonathan Lowrance, the high over all rookie, Blake Carnell, Dalton Mitchell, Brandon Hughes, and Jake Williams.
The National Championships will be held on August 5th & 6th of 2007 at the World Shooting Complex in Sparta, Illinois.
“It pleases me to see these young athletes come together and compete. These athletes represent the future of our hunting and shooting heritages in Tennessee. All of these teams worked very hard to get to Nashville, and we will certainly see some of them again atop the podiums come August at the SCTP Nationals Championships,” says Jerry Strom with the TWRA.
For more information, visit www.tnsctp.org or email Chad Whittenburg at cwhittenburg@tnwf.org .