Sporting Clays - Right on Target

by: Madi Bixler ’14

Did you know that our school has a Sporting Clays team?

WELL, WE DO! The 2020-2021 team was composed of 39 athletes, ranging from Grade 7 through Grade 12.

Last year, after participating in nine tournaments, the team received an invitation to the DFW League Championship and the Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) Texas State Championship. At the State competition, Harper Redmon (’26) and Brady Laramie (’22) took home first-place medals. Each competed in the American Skeet, American Trap, and Sporting Clays events. As a whole, the team brought home 14 medals over the course of the season, and Brady advanced to Nationals.

Harper was delighted to earn first place as a seventh grader: “The best part about winning State,” she says happily, “was finally feeling like the hard work paid off!”

Brady shot an almost perfect score (99/100) — among the top 5 of more than 400 participants — in Varsity Trap at the State competition, earning him the honor of All-State Member. “Brady missed only one target,” says Coach Mark Ansley. “Because of a tie with another contestant, they were forced into a shoot off. Brady hit fourteen out of fifteen targets, defeating his opponent by one.”

Brady was ecstatic: “Winning first place was quite unexpected. It was my first time shooting twenty-five straight and fifty straight in a competition, so I was extremely happy with that. After I hit the last target, I was in shock. I felt a sense of excitement and accomplishment. All my hard work paid off. The best part is being one of just five athletes to earn a spot on the State Trap team and representing Texas at Nationals in Ohio. I’m so proud to have represented Legacy Christian Academy at the State and National Competition.”

Coach Ansley guided the students through their State journey. “I’m extremely proud of both Harper and Brady for their accomplishments this year,” he says. “It shows what dedication and practice can do for a student. They’re sure to be future leaders on the team, and I can’t wait to see them progress even further.”

Brady’s skilled performance at State earned him a spot in the Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) National Competition, one of largest shooting events in the country. In July, some 3,000 athletes came to Marengo, Ohio, to vie for the honors.

Brady competed in three events: Skeet, Trap, and Sporting Clays. “I knew that if I kept practicing and brought the right attitude,” Brady says, “I would be able to make it to the National competition.” And sure enough, he did. “All three competitions are scored by how many targets a contestant hits,” Coach Ansley explains. Targets are thrown from eight stations, in various directions. “For example, Brady scored a personal best in Skeet at the Nationals by hitting 189/200 targets. Trap shooting is like Skeet except that the clay targets are all shot from the same station and move away from the shooter.”

The final event of the competition is Sporting Clays. “I think of Sporting Clays as golf with a shotgun,” Brady says with a laugh. “The shooter is forced to analyze the target.” With 15 stations and three or four sets of clays thrown in pairs from each, the difficulty level begins to increase.

“In regard to the focus and discipline needed to be successful,” says Brady, “after so much practice, this sport really becomes a mindset.”