Trap targets return after COVID-19

Hornets are back after 1 year break

Small, round disks speed through the sky at the shooting range outside Sparky’s Sport Shop in Colby. A second later they scatter into pieces after crack shots rain down from the rifles of Brekyn Lieders, Mateo Lopez and Alana Brill.

It’s been a year since Colby High’s trap shooting team has been at the range, but it’s pretty clear to anyone with eyes that the team remains sharp, their aim true.

That’s a welcome sight for new head coach Dan Hederer, who takes over for Jon Burnett, who stepped down after two years of leading the program. Hederer welcomes the challenge of leading the trap team. He says don’t expect too much to change with him at the helm.

“It’s going to be a challenge, I’ve never done it before, so it’s going to be different from other years. We also have a couple new coaches, but as far as how we coach, there won’t be a whole lotta changes from any other year.”

Hederer has been with the program since the beginning, and as he watches the trap team shatter clay target after clay target, there’s a smile of satisfaction spreading across his face that he doesn’t bother to hide.

“It’s good to be back,” Dan says, in between a break in the action.

For the next six weeks, students from the Colby School District’s high school and junior high will be busting these targets, and competing against schools from across the Wisconsin State High School Clay Target League (WSHSCTL).

They’ll also be banging off some rust, as they get back to competition form after being away for over a year. Like all things in the spring of 2020, the trap team’s season fell victim to COVID-19.

But while other sports had to wait for their return, members of the trap team honed their accuracy and marksmanship through the various hunting seasons, or took advantage of the Range Boys rifle league last summer.

“Last year I shot in summer league, so that definitely helped, since I was practicing with the adults and getting help and tips from them,” says sophomore Grady Steinman.

Steinman was part of the first group of eighth graders to be on the team in 2019, and after missing out on his freshman season, he’s glad to be back.

But there are some differences to this year’s team, and some missing faces from 2019. The biggest being the absence of Chase Oehmichen, the club’s top shooter in the club’s first two years. Others, like Garrett Weber and Connor Jeske, have graduated. Also gone is Mason Voss and Andrew Jeske.

“I think last year we would have had more numbers,” Hederer says about the lack of a season in 2020. “I think we had 17 kids signed up. This year we’re down to 11. We also got two eighth graders and one freshman that didn’t shoot last year.”

Brekyn Lieders and Mateo Lopez are two of the more experienced returners. They’ve stepped up in a big way this year. Both are showing the makings of being expert marksmen, but now they’re aiming to be leaders.

“We’re excited to be back,” Lopez says. “Last year we only got to shoot league, and then not having state wasn’t very fun. So we’re looking forward to state and just getting out there and shooting.”

Practices began April 5, but the club has not wasted any time in getting back in the saddle, especially for those who spent time shooting.

Nearly every returning member is at, or close to, where they were in 2019. It’s one of the reasons so many on Colby’s trap team like their chances for conference - and perhaps more.

“I do think we can win conference this year,” Lieders says without hesitation. “These guys have been shooting great so far, and I really think we could do conference. That’s also obviously a huge goal.”

The trap team has yet to finish below fourth in their conference, taking third in 2018, and fourth in 2019. 2019 also represented the club’s first time they placed at state, taking 65th overall in one of Wisconsin’s fastest growing club sports, with membership surpassing 1,500.

Expectations are still the same in 2021- compete for conference, do better at state, and then see if anyone from the team can qualify for Nationals.

State will be very different this season. In the past shooters travelled to Rome, Wis,. and joined hundreds of other shooters in pursuit of a title. With concerns from COVID-19 still lingering, teams will be shooting at their home range.

“It can be intimidating down there, but sometimes they need some intimidation,” Hederer says about the tense atmosphere. “It’s motivation. They see what everybody else is doing, and that can help them shoot too.”

Lieders feels his team has a good chance to take conference, and he feels that having state at home will help their chances to place higher than ever before.

“I do think we can do better,” Lieders replies. “Just shooting with these boys helps a lot. They’re all really good shooters, and it’s a lot more helpful to shoot with people you’re comfortable around. It definitely makes a difference.”

That being said, the chance for trophies and prizes and rankings isn’t what motivates the trap team to get out on cold, windy days, or wet, rainy days.

No, what gets them out, regardless of the conditions, is the camaraderie of the club, and of being part of something bigger than themselves.

“Every time I get out here, I get a lot closer with these boys, and you make new friends,” Lieders says. “We all bond out here and it’s a lot of fun.”

For one member, trap is more than just learning how to handle a gun, it’s also about bucking perceptions on what a trap club member is or should be.

Alana Brill is the lone female on this year’s team, and 2021 is her second season with the sport. Brill had her best performance at state in 2019, where she finished 26th in the female novice category.

“I think people think girls can’t shoot and do this kind of sport, but girls can actually do it. I think a lot of girls just don’t trust themselves,” Brill says about being the only girl on a male dominated sport. “It feels good to show people that I can do this and sort of prove them wrong.”

Growing the club, and giving young adults life skills, is what trap is all about, says Hederer.

“It’s nice to get them involved with another sport, and this is a sport they can do for the rest of their lives, and they can go into other competitions.

“It’s nice to see them back and having fun. It takes commitment to get good at anything, so it’s nice to see the kids want to be here and want to get better. It’s working out pretty good.”

LOCKED AND LOADED -Colby High junior Brekyn Lieders stands poised and ready to bust some clay targets during the first week of practice for the Colby Trap Team’s 2021 season. After taking a break due to COVID-19, Lieders is one of a handful of returning shooters who is back for more.

CRACK SHOT - Colby High’s Brayden Boyer takes careful aim of his target on Monday.STAFF PHOTOS/ROSS PATTERMANN