Statesmen Earn Silver at Prairie Circuit Regional Championships

Grand Island, Neb.–The William Penn shotgun sports team was in contention yet again, but fell just short of the crown as it competed at the Prairie Circuit Regional Championships Friday through Sunday.

WPU placed second out of seven teams with a score of 2,795-for-3,000, while Midland (Neb.) took the title at 2,820-for-3,000. Fort Hays State (Kan.) wrapped up the top three with 2,783 targets.

The Championships covered the six disciplines of Skeet, Doubles Skeet, Sporting Clays, Super Sporting, Trap, and Doubles Trap.

The navy and gold took second in five of the six areas, while coming away with the win in Super Sporting.

The squad’s Super Sporting score of 459-for-500 was headlined by Ian Darragh (So., Eagle, Idaho, Business Management) winning the individual title at 95-for-100.

Colton Heintz-Kuderer (Sr., Mabel, Minn., Master’s of Organizational Leadership) was next at 94-for-100, while Dylan Uitermarkt (Fr., Pella, Iowa, General Accounting) posted a score of 92-for-100.

Emily Sjoberg (Jr., Citrus Heights, Calif., Business Management) led the female shooters at 90-for-100, while the trio of Wyatt Kresser (Sr., Independence, Iowa, Public Accounting), Trenton Hol (So., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Industrial Technology), and Collin Whitehead (Fr., Puryear, Tenn., Business Management) also scored for William Penn at 88-for-100.

William Penn claimed individual titles in Skeet and Doubles Trap as well.

Uitermarkt won the Skeet crown with a perfect 100-for-100, while WPU managed a finish of 492-for-500.

Kresser was runner-up for the navy and gold at 99-for-100, while Sjoberg and Trenton Giese (Jr., Muskego, Wis., Mechanical Engineering) posted scores of 98-for-100.

The quartet of Darragh, Heintz-Kuderer, Whitehead, and Michael Hudnut (So., New Sharon, Iowa, Nursing) all produced scores of 97-for-100.

Cole Henning (Sr., Wilton, Iowa, Industrial Technology) earned gold in Doubles Trap at 97-for-100, while Izaac Zihlman (So., Mount Pleasant, Iowa, Business Management) also hit 97 targets, but lost the shoot-off. Overall, the Statesmen posted a score of 464-for-500.

Lexi Henning (Sr., Wilton, Iowa), at 92-for-100, Morgan Hodge (Sr., West Liberty, Iowa, Nursing), at 90-for-100, and Darragh and Karla Priebe (So., Wichita Falls, Texas, Industrial Technology), both at 88-for-100, also got on the scoreboard for their team.

Uitermarkt nearly picked up two titles, finishing in the runner-up spot in Doubles Skeet at 97-for-100. William Penn recorded a squad score of 473-for-100.

Heintz-Kuderer was at 97-for-100 as well, while the trio of Darragh, Giese, and Brianna Thompson (Sr., Campbellsport, Wis., Psychology) all finished at 93-for-100. Thompson’s efforts were good for second in the ladies’ division.

Thompson added a women’s title to her list of accolades with a perfect 100-for-100 in Trap. Henning also connected on all 100 targets as WPU was 494-for-500 overall.

Hol, Kresser, and Mason Drout (So., Muskego, Wis., Mechanical Engineering) were at 98-for-100 as well.

The Sporting Clays competition witnessed the Statesmen connect on 413 of their 500 targets, led by an 86-for-100 performance by Jakob Moesgaard (Fr., Burlington, Wis., Mechanical Engineering).

Brenden Becker (So., Genoa City, Wis., Business Management) was next at 83-for-100, while Whitehead had a score of 82-for-100. Uitermarkt and Charlie Jones (Fr., Waterford, Wis., Mechanical Engineering) also helped with the team tally at 81-for-100.

Darragh topped William Penn in the High Overall Athlete standings in 12th at 545-for-600.

Sjoberg was second amongst all female shooters at 527-for-600, while Priebe was third at 524-for-600. As a top-five finisher, both Sjoberg and Priebe were named to the all-region team.

Whitehead, who placed third in the freshman standings, was named to the all-region freshman team with a tally of 534-for-600.

“In a strong field, against some of the best competition in the Midwest and the country, this team continues to improve and show how talented they are,” Head Coach Colten Uitermarkt said. “Taking second at a tournament of this magnitude, across six disciplines, is no easy task. We were pulling scores from everywhere; the depth we have is starting to show. I am seeing improvement across the board and could not be more proud of this team. As a team, we have been living in fast forward. These next two weeks we will be able to slow things down in practice and really work on things to improve upon.”

Next Up: William Penn takes a week off before traveling to Cedar Falls to compete in the Wartburg Invitational on Friday-Sunday, October 9-11.