Writer: Ohioans do well in rifle, shotgun matches

The Toledo Blade outdoor writer Steve Pollick is
covering the just-ended National Rifle and Pistol Matches at Camp Perry near Port Clinton and at the Clay Target Championships in Sparta, IL (the Grand American World's Trapshooting Championships, held in Vandalia, OH for 81 straight years, were forced out last year by Dayton airport expansion).

From the story:

Ohio shooters have made their marks in the target shooting world this summer...

Ken Potter, a Toledo police patrolman for nearly 16 years, was crowned national high-power rifle police champion after firing a score of 2333-73X out of a possible 2400. The X-score refers to tie-breaking center-shot bull's-eyes.

In the same matches, Jack G. Jones of Akron was named senior champion by firing a 2363-81X...

Earlier in the matches, Paul Gideon of Gambier, Ohio, won the .22 rifle prone championships, and Chad Cleland of Swanton won the .22 rifle rim fire sporter/optical-sight title.

For more, click 'Read More'.

Again, from the story:

At Sparta, the new home of the Grand American World's Trapshooting Championships, a northwest Ohio youth team emerged as a winner in the Scholastic Clay Target Program. That event fielded 1,500 young shotgunners from 26 states.

In the junior-experienced division, northwest Ohio's Sportsman's Club Clay Crushers captured the championship by breaking two more targets, 956 out of 1,000 thrown, than the Waterfall Valley team from Alabama.

The Ohio team members, all in grades 6 to 8, included Nathan Waldock, Matthew Ritz and Alisha Lutz, all of Attica, Joshua Reed of Willard and Clay Mesnard of Bloomville.

"They shot better than they ever have," said their coach, Ron Waldock, of Attica. "This is their best score yet. Last year they took second at the Grand and missed first by one bird, so they were after it this year. These guys started with me when they were rookies and they have just grown and grown."

Pollick writes that the top three teams in each division received college scholarships in the form of savings bonds, with first place teams receiving $1,000.

The scholastic program was developed by the National Shooting Sports Foundation to offer young men and women in grades 12 and under an opportunity to compete in trap, skeet and Sporting Clays events.