The Hillsdale College Shotgun Team narrowly missed the Division II Team High Overall podium at the 2026 ACUI/SCTP Collegiate Clay Target Championship. The event, held from March 17-22 at the National Shooting Complex in San Antonio, TX, featured nearly 1200 competitors from over 100 teams from across the country. The shoot consisted of 100 each of American Trap, Trap Doubles, American Skeet, Skeet Doubles, Sporting Clays, and Super Sporting.
 
The Chargers hit a total of 494/500 as a team in American Trap, falling to 5^th in Division II and tied for the 8^th highest score regardless of division. Junior Madeline Corbin led the way with a perfect 100 straight followed by 99/100 from senior Davis Hay and junior Alex Hoffman. Three Chargers broke 98 targets: sophomore Marin McKinney, freshman Zach Hinze, and freshman Brayden Hoppa. Corbin was in a 6-way shoot-off and took 2^nd in women's AA Class.
 
Breaking 471/500 in Trap Doubles dropped Hillsdale into 5^th in Division II and 9^th overall. Hinze's 96/100 was the team's top score followed by a trio of 94s from Hay, junior Luke Johnson, and sophomore Taylor Dale. McKinney and senior Leif Andersen each hit 93 targets.
 
In American Skeet, the Chargers finished 1^st place in Division II and tied Texas A&M for the highest score regardless of division with 496/500. 2^nd within the division went to Emmanuel University (492) and 3^rd to Fort Hays State University (492). Hay and senior Kyle Fleck each shot 100-straights with 99s from Johnson and Corbin. Andersen, Hoppa, and Dale rounded out the team score with 98/100. Hay and Fleck were in shoot-offs for class and overall and ended up taking 1^st and 3^rd in AA Class respectively. Corbin took 3^rd in Women's AA Class after a shoot-off as well.
 
Hillsdale took 3^rd in Skeet Doubles for Division II (tied for 6^th overall) after breaking 479 out of 500 targets. Midland University (486) topped the podium with second going to Fort Hays (482). Hay (99/100) led the team with other contributors being Johnson (97), Hoffman (95), and ties from Fleck (94), Dale (94), and freshman Max Versluys (94). Hay earned 3^rd place men's AA Class.
 
The Chargers hit 435/500 targets on a challenging Sporting Clays course to end in 4^th in Division II and 10^th overall. Johnson (94/100) was the top team finisher and was in a shoot-off for the high score of the tournament. He earned 3^rd place in Men's A Class. Rounding out the squad was freshman David Texas Ardis (91), Hinze (85), Fleck (83), and Dale (82).
 
In Super Sporting, Hillsdale broke 474 out of 500 targets to take 2^nd place in DII and 6^th overall. William Penn University took 1^st and 3^rd went to Emmanuel. Alex Hoffman led the Chargers with 97/100 which earned him a spot in a shoot-off after which unfortunately he did not place. Ardis broke 96 targets followed by Johnson with 95, McKinney with 94, and ties at 92 from Hoppa, Andersen, and Hinze. McKinney earned 1^st in Women's B Class.
 
Breaking a team total of 2849/3000 targets, the Chargers were the 4^th place finisher in Division II (teams with 11-20 competitors at the event). They were just 6 targets behind Fort Hays and Emmanuel tied for 2^nd and 3^rd. Overall, they were the 7^th highest scoring school regardless of division. Hay finished the week as the Men's High Combined Skeet competitor. He and Corbin were also in a shoot-off for Men's and Women's High Combined Singles, but ultimately did not take the title. Six Charger student-athletes earned All-American honors for their performances across the week. Luke Johnson tied for the 4^th highest score of any competitor and earned a spot on the 1^st All-American Team. Taylor Dale tied for the 4^th highest women's score and earned a spot on both the women's All-American Team as well as open 2^nd All-American. Davis Hay, David Texas Ardis, and Zach Hinze all earned 2^nd Team honors while Madeline Corbin was also given a spot on the Women's Team. Kyle Fleck was named an Honorable Mention.
 
"A lot goes into an event of this scale," said head coach Jordan Hintz. "The wind on Monday definitely hurt us a little, but our performance on Friday across the board was phenomenal. We had seniors and freshman contribute and a bunch of All-American placements. There's a lot to be proud of and the team will hold their heads high. This was the strongest competition ever in the division and to be so close will drive them to do even better next year."
 
Hillsdale also competed in the Make-A-Break side event. The top 4 teams in the point-based event were placed in a bracketed head-to-head tournament to decide the ultimate champion. 32 teams participated and the Chargers' squad of Ava Downs, David Texas Ardis, Leif Andersen, Davis Hay, and Max Versluys were given the 4-seed. Besting 1-seed Clemson University 2-0 in the first round, they earned a spot in the finals against Lindenwood University. After 40 exciting shots, Hillsdale again won 2-0 to bring home the trophy.
 
Although the season is complete, Charger athletes now look ahead to a variety of events in the summer including USA Shooting Nationals, Junior Olympics, and SCTP Nationals.
 
 
Results: https://app.sssfonline.com/nationals/4991
 
1^st Place DII American Skeet Team – Kyle Fleck, Davis Hay, Madeline Corbin, Luke Johnson, (tie) Brayden Hoppa, Taylor Dale, Leif Andersen
 
2nd Place DII Super Sporting Team – Alex Hoffman, David Texas Ardis, Luke Johnson, Marin McKinney, (tie) Brayden Hoppa, Leif Andersen, Zach Hinze
 
3^rd Place DII Doubles Skeet Team – Davis Hay, Luke Johnson, Alex Hoffman, (tie) Max Versluys, Kyle Fleck, Taylor Dale
 
 
Davis Hay – High Men's Combined Skeet
Davis Hay – 1^st Men's AA Class Skeet
Madeline Corbin – 2^nd Women's AA Class Trap
Davis Hay – 3^rd Men's AA Class Doubles Skeet
Madeline Corbin – 3^rd Women's AA Class Skeet
Kyle Fleck – 3^rd Men's AA Class Skeet
Luke Johnson – 3^rd Men's A Class Sporting Clays
Marin McKinney – 1^st Women's B Class Super Sporting
 
 
All Americans:
Luke Johnson (1^st Team)
David Texas Ardis (2^nd Team)
Davis Hay (2^nd Team)
Zach Hinze (2^nd Team)
Taylor Dale (2^nd Team)
Kyle Fleck (Honorable Mention)
Taylor Dale (Women's Team)
Madeline Corbin (Women's Team)
 
 
Make-A-Break National Champions – Max Versluys, Ava Downs, David Texas Ardis, Leif Andersen, Davis Hay