The competitive shooting season came to an end with a bang in Pilot Point, with the Bearcats Shooting Club competing at the Texas Scholastic Clay Target Program State Championship in San Antonio June 12-15.
The Bearcats Shooting Club finished 22nd out of 40 teams from four states—Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Arkansas.
“We had a lot of highs; a lot of personal bests for the kids,” Bearcats head coach Chris Krouskup said. “Overall, it was a challenging course and setup. The heat was just horrendous on Day 2, and it really knocked some of our shooters down and wore them out, but we saw a lot of picked-up birds and a big increase in how many [targets] they hit overall.”
Seven shooters—senior Kaylen Stewart; juniors Jackson Burgess, Cole Krouskup and Ashton Handsaker; sophomore Matthew Vincent; freshman Gabriel Safar; and sixth grader Isaias Navarro— represented the Bearcats in the team’s second appearance at the state-level tournament.
The Bearcats competed in the sporting clays, skeet and trapshooting divisions with the team’s strongest performance coming in trapshooting, where multiple shooters set new personal records.
Stewart scored 91 in trapshooting, which was the sixthhighest total out of 38 shooters in the ladies’ senior/varsity division.
Handsaker scored 90 in trapshooting, which placed him 40th out of 125 shooters in the men’s senior/varsity division, while Cole, Burgess and Vincent all scored over 80.
Stewart, Cole and Handsaker even earned Texas SCTP 24-Almost Straight patches, with each coming one shot away from completing the gold standard of breaking all 25 clay targets in a single round of trapshooting.
“We were right there and then just missed that one,” Chris said. “It was disheartening for me, so I can't imagine what the kids had to go through when they saw it, but to know that I had three shooters get that close five times total, where we're just that one bird away from actually getting that straight run, and if they did it twice, we're that much closer to getting 50 straight. That just shows the team's progression and that they're getting better and better every time we go out.”
Two of the newest members of the Bearcats Shooting Club, Safar and Navarro, who both just finished their first season with the team, also set new personal bests.
Safar took a big step forward, scoring 72 in the men’s senior/junior varsity division, well above his averages for the season.
“On the first day, I was kind of sloppy, and I didn't shoot that many,” he said. “I was stuck in my normal 30s to 40s, [but] on the second day, I picked up pace. … Next year I want to keep my head in the game more and try to [improve] my stance.”
Navarro, who began the season scoring a 10 in trapshooting, capped his rookie season with a 61-point performance and set new personal records in sporting clays and skeet.
“I was nervous at first, but when I saw I was doing well, I started to get less nervous,” he said. “… I hope I can take what I learned about my stance and how I shoot into next season.”
With their third season behind them, Bearcats Shooting Club sponsor Donna Krouskup spoke highly of the growth the program has experienced.
“From our first year, we've come a long way in fundraising and in making the funds available for these students,” she said. “In the beginning, we had to buy our own clays, and now it's fully funded by our booster club and our fundraising. That's a big thing, because it's such an expensive sport, so we're able to help take that burden off our families.”
She also highlighted the development the team’s roster has demonstrated and hopes this year’s performance encourages more interest.
“We’re also seeing a lot more dedication from the students, with them participating in not just one practice a week, but they're coming to both,” Donna said. “For a lot of them, this is their only sport, [and] they really enjoy it. … We want to get more middle school kids involved so that we have more time with them and can get them to perfect their craft a little bit more. If we can do that, things are only going to get better because we'll be able
The Bearcats Shooting Club coaches Jason Hanksaker, left, and Chris Krouskup watch the competition at the National Shooting Complex. Photo Courtesy of Pilot Point ISD
