The Ellsworth Jr./ Sr. High School trap team competed at the Kansas Trap Shooting Association’s annual state trap shooting tournament in Sedgwick June 16-18.

Ellsworth placed second overall in the novice division and was only two targets away from first.

The competition was split into three different levels — novice, 0-14.99 average per round, junior varsity, 15-18.99 targets average per round and varsity, 19-25 average per round.

There was individual success as well. In the novice boys’ division, eighth grader Ayden Blue took fourth place by scoring 78/100. Eighth grader Kane Rush shot a 75/100 giving him 10th place. Freshman Cyrus Grothusen shot 71/100 for 16th and eighth grader Lane Howard shot 70/100 for 19th.

In the novice girls’ division, junior Jessa Schultz tied for 20th.

“She’s come a long way,” Coach Bruce Hyman said.

The top shooter for the junior varsity boys’ division was junior Caleb Hays who scored an 89/100 for 10th place.

Ellsworth wasn’t able to field a varsity team, but the top shooter for Ellsworth was senior Trenton Hays. He shot against tough competition in the boys’ varsity division, scoring 90/100 for 89th.

The team didn’t enter into the competition with any strategy, but that didn’t hold them back.

“It was all up to the kids,” Coach Tim Hays said. “I think they were less intimidated, competed really well and shot really well. Watching everyone improve was the best part of coaching. Seeing kids that started the season hitting one or two then coming to the state shoot and hitting 15.”

The event featured more than 1,500 competitors. The Ellsworth team consisted of 18 Ellsworth student athletes competed. On June 18, 662 students from 32 schools competed on that day alone.

The spectators and crowd didn’t faze the young competitors as they stepped up to the line.

“They were able to funnel their focus,” Hyman said. “I’ve been shooting trap for a long time and spent a lot of time as a firearms instructor on the (highway) patrol. One of the things about trap shooting, it’s mainly a mental game.”

Weeks of practice led up to the eventful day. Every Sunday afternoon, students grade 7-12 would head out to the Ellsworth County Sportsman’s Club to shoot 50 targets in regular season competition. The gun range was founded many years ago by Coach Keith Bruning, and turned into a place where clubs, leagues and locals could compete.

“I had a few friends and my brother that were very interested and wanted to build a place to shoot trap shooting leagues,” Bruning said.

He and a “few dozen others” scouted around for a location and leased some land. A local attorney financed it, allowing them to build their first trap house and sidewalk. Eventually, they raised the funds to build a clubhouse and second trap house and sidewalk.

Bruning served as treasurer and then president of the club for years before shifting his focus to coaching the newlyformed high school team. “The best part of coaching is watching youngsters develop,” he said. “I see it in (their) faces and your eyes when scores improve, and it makes me feel good.”

Bruning made it clear the importance of improvement over placing at state.

“Trap shooting is a personal sport,” he said. “We are trying as coaches to get each shooter to do their own personal best. That might be 50 percent, 60, 90 or all. When you’re shooting trap, you’re competing against yourself.”

All three coaches said the same thing when asked about the best way to improve and compete well — perfect the basics.

“The trap shooting discipline hasn’t changed,” Hyman said. “It’s still perfecting the basics and staying focused on each target. The instruction given by the Fort Hays clay target team reinforced this to all our athletes.”