CEDAR FALLS — The Solon Spartans Trapshooting team participated in the Iowa Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) Trap Championships held at the Iowa State Trapshooting grounds, located north of Cedar Falls, from June 9 to 12.
Throughout the regular season, the team competed in three trapshooting disciplines: singles, handicap, and doubles, in eight local meets since late March. The Iowa SCTP Trap Championships marks the culmination of the season, featuring 4,886 entries from over 120 teams across Iowa, with nearly 770,000 clay targets launched throughout the week.
Varsity level athletes consist of those who are sophomore through senior years in high school. Of these, 933 men and 218 women participated in the 200-target singles competition. The Solon Spartans had seven registered with Ethan Ressler breaking 189 targets, Kacey Craig hitting 184, Dylan Dunnwald blasting 181, Allen Shima hitting 179, Bubba Kreps smashing 166, and Brayden Netolicky shooting 143. Alannah Mahoney hit 191 targets, and Morgan Bleeker busted 168 targets in the women’s varsity competition.
Junior Varsity is made up of high school freshmen or upperclassmen who are shooting for their first year and they also compete in a 200-target singles competition. The Solon Trapshooting team had four in the JV men’s division. Arthur Martin earned 25th place in JV men’s division with 190, backing him up was Connor Mahoney hitting 187, Nathan Cross with 180, and Lincoln DeWild with 174.
Students in sixth to eighth grades competed at the Intermediate Entry (first year) and Advanced level in Singles. Leading our intermediate team was newcomer Jacob Pauba who hit an impressive 179 targets, closely followed by third year member, Jeremiah Bartlett who scored 177. Charles Ferin smashed 171 targets while first year participants Sawyer Gerlits scored 166 followed by Jasper Gerlits with 159. Carley Hopp hit 155 targets for her first state competition while Connor Steele smashed 146. To round up the intermediate division, Abe Singbeil recorded 107 and Victoria Stull finished with 28 targets broken.
In Senior Varsity 100-target Handicap competition, Alannah Mahoney picked off 77 targets and Morgan Bleeker hit 69 on the lady’s’ side while in the men’s division Ethan Ressler and Kacey Craig hit 83, Allen Shima broke 78 clays and Caden Stull and Dylan Dunnwald each hit 74 targets. First timer Bubba Kreps shot 67.In the JV men’s division, Connor Mahoney, and Nathan Cross hit 83 targets each. Arthur Martin finished with 76 targets.
For Solon’s intermediate handicap group, newcomers Jacob Pauba blasted 81 targets followed by Sawyer Gerlits with 80. Jasper Gerlits, Connor Steele, and Carley Hopp rounded out the intermediate level with 73, 72, and 68, respectively.
For the Senior Varsity 100 target Doubles competition, Alannah Mahoney blasted 90, Kacey Craig shot 89, Dylan Dunnwald hit 88, Ethan Ressler smashed 82, Allen Shima busted 72 targets, Caden Stull hit 71, and Morgan Bleeker finished with 62. In the junior varsity division, Connor Mahoney shot 84, Arthur Martin hit 78 targets, Lincoln DeWild blasted 74 and Nathan Cross hit 52. Solon had 2 intermediate entries, Charles Ferin blasted 60 and first year member Carley Hopp won 2nd place in her division with 73. Carley also brought home 3rd place in ladies intermediate entry level league scores for the season.
The outcomes at the Iowa SCTP Trap Championships showcased the dedication of all the athletes. Those returning next year are eager to build on their achievements and foster further growth.
As the 2026 trapshooting season wraps up, the team will bid farewell to six seniors due to graduation, along with board members, coaches, and volunteers who have contributed significantly to the program over the past four years.
New board members and coaches are currently organizing to take the reins in the coming months.
If you are interested in joining the Solon Spartan Trapshooting Team, becoming part of the coaching staff, or contributing financially through sponsorships, please reach out to soloniatrap@ gmail.com.