04/11/14
Fort Hays State University shooters broke 2,199 clay targets out of 2,330 to win the Division II Collegiate Clay Target Championships at the national competition of the Association of College Unions International in San Antonio.

The FHSU Shooting team won International Trap and American Trap, took second in American Skeet, International Skeet and Five-Stand and fourth in Sporting Clays. Team events are not divided by gender.

In individual events, two FHSU shooters got perfect scores. Damian Giles, North Platte, Neb., graduate student, broke 100 targets in American Skeet and finished second in the shoot off, and Ashley Nau, Gering, Neb., senior, broke 100 targets in American Trap and finished first in the shoot off. Giles finished second in the combined American Trap and Skeet events, breaking 199 out of 200 targets. Nau also finished first in combined American Trap and Skeet, breaking 197 out of 200 targets.

Giles and Austin Svoboda, Burwell, Neb., freshman, were named NRA All Americans. This is Giles' third consecutive year as an NRA All American.

"This year's shooters reached a high level of achievement through their time and effort in practice," said Dr. Duane Shepherd, associate professor of health and human performance and team coach. "This year was the biggest national championship ever, with over 600 students from over 75 schools nationwide."

For clay target shooters, special International Skeet and International Trap competitions were sponsored by USA Shooting, the governing body for the U.S. Olympics shooting teams. Kilee Hutchison, Pratt senior, and Josh Crankshaw, North Platte, Neb., sophomore, placed second in Olympic Bunker Trap. Robert Ring, Springfield, Colo., senior, placed fourth in Olympic Bunker Trap and Giles placed fourth in Olympic International Skeet.

ACUI shooting divisions are based on the number of shooters, not the size of the school.

Members of the FHSU Shooting Team for the ACUI nationals, are listed by hometown with their high schools, classifications and majors:

BARTLEY, NEB. (69020): Tye Smith, a McCook High School graduate, is a senior majoring in agribusiness.
BURWELL, NEB. (68823): Austin Svoboda, a Burwell High School graduate, is a freshman majoring in technology studies.
FREMONT, NEB. (68025): Jeremy Denny, a Fremont High School graduate, is a junior majoring in general studies.
GERING, NEB. (69341): Ashley Nau, a Gering High School graduate, is a senior majoring in biology.
HAYSVILLE (67060): Tarent Tevis, a Derby High School graduate, is a senior majoring in agribusiness.
KINGMAN (67068): Tyler Bock, a Kingman High School graduate, is a junior majoring in agribusiness.
LAMAR, COLO. (81052): Zeb Harvey, a Lamar High School graduate, is a junior majoring in finance.
NORTH PLATTE, NEB. (69101): Josh Crankshaw, a North Platte High School graduate, is a sophomore majoring in technology studies.
Damian Giles, a North Platte High School graduate, is a graduate student majoring in liberal studies with a concentration in organizational leadership.
PRATT (67124): Kilee Hutchison, a Lakin High School graduate, is a senior majoring in animal science.
SPRINGFIELD, COLO. (81073): Robert Ring, a Springfield High School graduate, is a senior majoring in accounting.
TESCOTT (67484): Zack McClure, a Tescott High School graduate, is a senior majoring in general science.
TONGANOXIE (66086): Cody Martin, a Tonganoxie High School graduate, is a sophomore majoring in justice studies.
Dylan Young, a Tonganoxie High School graduate, is a senior majoring in management.