Concordia Bulldog International Results (PDF)
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. – A few weeks following the 2024 ACUI National Championships, ten Bulldogs from the Concordia Shooting Sports program competed at the Concordia Bulldog International Tournament held at Heartland Public Shooting Park in Grand Island, Neb., April 13-14. Most significantly, senior Sam Blevins and sophomore Kaylee Hinton won bunker titles as part of the small-scale event. There were 12 total competitors who tested themselves in the disciplines of bunker and international skeet.
This marked the second year in a row that Head Coach Dylan Owens’ program hosted the event, which is designed to provide opportunities for athletes who want to compete in the international disciplines, which differ from the typical events the Bulldogs shoot at qualifying and national competitions.
“It was good to see some athletes have a chance to shoot these events,” Owens said. “We had three who had never shot international before and they showed an ability to adapt to it quickly. They showed promise for the future if they want to keep working at it. Everyone seemed to have a great time. It was nice to have this event to kind of close out the season.”
For those unfamiliar, the NCSSAA helps explain international bunker trap and skeet on its website. As the organization states, “Bunker has five shooting stations, but rather than having only one machine in a trap house, it has fifteen fixed machines housed in a bunker. The targets fly faster and at a wider angle than American Trap, which makes it considerably more difficult. International Skeet features a low-gun position and variable-timing target release. Similarly to Bunker, the speed of the targets thrown in International Skeet is much faster than in American Skeet.”
Concordia entered five shooters into the bunker competition, which was formatted to have each athlete take aim at 125 targets. Blevins cracked 106 targets and was followed by teammates in Mason Ward (95), Haley Schmutzer (90), Katie Welker (77) and Hinton (67). Then in the finals, Blevins defeated Ward, 33-21, on the men’s side while Hinto bested Welker, 28-16, on the women’s side.
In international skeet, five Bulldogs shot 125 targets: Brayden Tosh (72), Cael Washburn (63), Devin Harris (57), Rayne Larrison (40) and Faith Ritchie (34). Tosh made the biggest push for a title before Matthew Brindley of William Penn University (Iowa) won the championship on the men’s side. High school competitor Madalynn Schroder took home the women’s i-skeet title.
Throughout 2023-24, Owens’ squads competed in 10 events. For most Bulldogs, the season concluded at the 2024 ACUI National Championships in San Antonio, Texas, where Concordia placed seventh high overall as a team in the Division 2 breakdown. A recap of that event can be found HERE.
Concordia International Tournament Event Champions
Men’s Bunker – Sam Blevins, Concordia
Women’s Bunker – Kaylee Hinton, Concordia
Men’s International Skeet – Matthew Brindley, William Penn
Women’s International Skeet – Madalynn Schroder, HS Competitor