Mason, MI – Athletes & teams representing 466 high schools from across the nation participated at the 2023 USA High School Clay Target League National Championship July 5th-10th, 2023. The USAHSCTL National Championship, which was held at the Michigan Trapshooting Association in Mason, MI, featured team and individual competition to award the top ten male and female high school athletes and top five high school teams in the country.
The National Championship was proudly presented by SCHEELS. Additional sponsors include: the U.S. Army, the Greater Lansing Sports Authority, Ducks Unlimited, the Bass Pro/Cabela’s Outdoor Fund, Walker’s, Do-All Outdoors, Mark Zauhar, Friends of NRA, and Sportsman’s Guide.
240 high school teams took part in the USAHSCTL National Team Championship. The qualifying round took place on Friday, July 7th. The top 80 teams qualified to move on to the Championship round, which was held in the morning on Sunday, July 9th.
On Saturday, July 8th, 1,800 of the top high school athletes competed in the USAHSCTL National Individual Championship Qualifier. Of those, just 400 made it to the Sunday afternoon final.
In the Sunday Team Final, Calhoun High School (IL) took home title of National Team Champion. It was Calhoun High School’s third National Team Championship title in as many years.
The Sunday Individual Final was an exciting affair, with 19 athletes shooting perfect scores at the end of regular competition. Those 19 went on to compete in a grueling shoot-off, which saw recent graduate Landon Sievers from Calhoun High School of Illinois persevere to claim the Overall National Champion crown.
Audrey Gordon of Southwestern High School (IL) was one of two females that shot perfect scores and went on to compete in the shoot-off. Gorden edged out her competition to take home the title of top female in the nation.
Full scores & standings from the event can be found at www.claytargetleaderboard.com
Photos and videos of the event can be found at www.facebook.com/USAHSCTLNationalChampionship
34,629 student-athletes representing 1,625 high school teams across the country participated in USA Clay Target League programs this spring. Only the top athletes and teams qualified to register for the National Championship, based on season averages at the completion of the spring season. Registration was filled in just 3 days.
About the USA Clay Target League
With over 47,000 participating athletes in the 2022-2023 school year, the non-profit USA Clay Target League is the largest youth clay target shooting sport program in the world. The League offers trap, skeet, sporting clays, and 5-stand leagues to secondary and postsecondary schools across the country.
The League is the only 100% school-approved clay target shooting sport program in America and the League’s co-ed and adaptive nature are key attractions to schools nationwide. The League is fully Title IX compliant with both male and female athletes competing on the same team. Additionally, it’s an ‘adaptive’ sport, which allows students with physical disabilities to take part.
The League’s priorities are safety, fun, and marksmanship – in that order.
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.
Visit http://usaclaytargetchampionship.com for more information.
