The Hillsdale College Shotgun Team earned its first-ever Division II national championship title at the 2024 Association of College Unions International and Scholastic Clay Target Program National Championship, held at the National Shooting Complex in San Antonio, Texas, March 18-23.
The 16-person team from Hillsdale competed in Division II against 19 other programs and walked away from the match with a team score of 2899, also earning multiple individual and team awards.
Hillsdale captured the Division II title with a score that was nine points ahead of the runner-up team, the University of Tennessee Southern.
“The team had a truly dominant performance, arguably the best in our history,” Hillsdale College Shotgun Team Head Coach Jordan Hintz said. “Our shooters have worked hard all season, and it has paid off.”
More information about ACUI/SCTP Collegiate Clay Target Championship: “The Collegiate Clay Target Championships bring together athletes from around the country to compete for top honors in all disciplines, including American, International and Doubles events.”
During this year’s championship, Hillsdale secured several other awards in Division II, including first place Super Sporting Team, first place American Trap Team, first place Trap Doubles Team, first place Skeet Doubles Team and third place American Skeet Team. In addition, 11 Hillsdale shotgun athletes were selected as All-Americans across all divisions.
Of the 16-person Hillsdale College Shotgun Team, one student-athlete has been named to the USA Shooting Paralympic Team, along with four to the Junior Olympic Team.
“Hillsdale is becoming a training ground for some of the best shooters in the country. In the coming years, we might see these young men and women become some of the best in the world,” Hintz said.
While the victory marks the Hillsdale College Shotgun Team’s first Division II title at the ACUI/SCTP Collegiate Clay Target Championship, it is no stranger to victory. In fact, it has won the Division III title seven times, including five times consecutively.
“Division II limits competition team size to 20 student-athletes, but some teams have much larger rosters and bring only their top shooters to compete. Since we’re smaller, all of our athletes have to be all-around shooters. We proved that we have some of the most complete competitors in the nation,” Hintz said.
See the full results of the 2024 ACUI/SCTP Collegiate Clay Target Championship at this link.
Learn more about Hillsdale College at hillsdale.edu.
