COLUMBUS, Ohio – Following on their national title in Doubles Trap, the North Scott Trap Team of Iowa faced an intra-squad shoot off to take the Handicap Trap title in the Varsity Division during competition at the 2017 Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) National Team Championships.

After shooting their 1,000 targets in regulation, both the Gray and Red squads of the North Scott Trap Team finished with 881 sending them into a shoot off with each five member squad facing a total of 125 targets.

On the flip of a coin the Double Trap National Championship Red Squad, made up of Eric Long of Davenport and Cameron Johns of Bettendorf, each with 187 in regulation, Andrew Troje of Donahue (178), Brandon Venhorst of Eldridge (170) and Alexis Louck of Eldridge (159), took the field and broke 110 of their 125 targets.

Then it was the Gray Squad's turn. Led by Hunter Block of Eldridge (184 in regulation), Zach Howes of Long Grove (177), Braxton Childers of Bettendorf (176), Kyle Coomer of De Witt (173) and Michael Mohr of Long Grove (171), the Gray squad found themselves with just 12 dropped targets with just 10 left to shoot. In the next relay of five targets the squad dropped another target and then another in the final relay leaving them four broken targets away from the title.

As each target was thrown it was met by a cloud of lead shot, and as the final of four targets fell in pieces to the ground, the North Scott Trap Team's Gray squad finished one target ahead of the Red squad to take the Handicap Trap National Championship.

Coming in third place with 857 targets broken in regulation was yet another Iowa team. The Pleasant Valley High School Trap Team were led by Brent Alman with 189 followed by Ethan Hornbuckle with 177, Jack Ager with 174, Daniel Romans with 167 and Cody Parkhurst with 150. All five members of the Pleasant Valley squad are from Bettendorf.

Held July 8-15 at the Cardinal Shooting Center in Marengo, Ohio, more than 2,300 athletes representing 29 states faced over one million clay targets during eight days of competition in the shooting disciplines of Trap, Skeet and Sporting Clays.

The Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) is a youth development program in which adult coaches and other volunteers use the shooting sports of Trap, Skeet and Sporting Clays, as well as the Olympic disciplines of Bunker Trap, Trap Doubles and International Skeet to teach and to demonstrate sportsmanship, responsibility, honesty, ethics, integrity, teamwork, and other positive life skills. Nationally, there are nearly 14,800 students and more than 3,300 adult volunteers across 45 states participating in the Scholastic Clay Target Program.

The Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation, Inc. (SSSF), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is the National Governing Body for the Scholastic Clay Target Program. SCTP was started by the National Shooting Sports Foundation in 2001.

For more information about SCTP and SSSF, visi www.sssfonline.org. You can also follow SCTP on Facebook a www.facebook.com/ShootSCTP or https://www.instagram.com/scholasticshootingsports/>@ScholasticShootingSports on Instagram.