BRAINARD, Neb. – For the first time this season, the Concordia University shooting sports program hosted its own meet as 11 teams and 10 individual high school competitors took the stage at Oak Creek Sporting Club in Brainard, Neb., this past Saturday and Sunday (Oct. 5-6). The Bulldogs placed second with a team total of 1,258 targets while finishing behind only Midland (1,292) at the event dubbed the Bulldog Sporting Classic. A total of 144 shooters took part in the two-day competition.
The event marked the fourth of this fall season for head coach Scott Moniot’s program. All shooters at the Bulldog Sporting Classic in sporting clays and super sporting competitions. Thirty-four shooters represented the Bulldogs, who were also second at the meet in sporting clays (833) and super sporting (425).
“The scores were consistently on the lower side, but we got a lot of compliments from the coaches and competitors,” Moniot said. “They thought it was a very well-set course. Oak Creek did a fantastic job. It went really, really well.
“One of the most exciting things was how our team did. Our goal was to try and be in the top three or four so to finish second was really good. We know Fort Hays State did not have all their top shooters, but we hit our goal. We had five sophomores, two freshmen, two juniors and one senior do all the scoring for us so that tells you we have a lot of depth coming up.”
Concordia females combined for four podium placements over the weekend. Graduate student Erin Lokke placed third high overall (244) among women. The native of Saint Francis, Minn., also was the female runner up in sporting clays (165). Lastly, senior Monica Dale (85) and sophomore Nicole Breese (84) placed second and third, respectively, in super sporting.
In terms of high overall, the top five Bulldogs were sophomore Wyatt Hambly (255), junior Mackenze Origer (254), sophomore Bryon Baca (247), freshman Cole Hammond (246) and freshman Blake Greckel (245). The top five in sporting clays were Origer (170), Hambly (168), Baca (166), Lokke (165) and sophomore Colten Uitermarkt (164). Concordia’s top five in super sporting featured Hambly (87), Dale (85), Hammond (85), Breese (84) and Origer (84).
The field of teams at the Bulldog Sporting Classic included Concordia, CU (??), Doane, Fort Hays State University, Hastings, Iowa Western Community College, Midland, University of Missouri, Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture and Oklahoma State University.
Next up is the Hastings Bronco Invitational in Grand Island, Neb., this Saturday and Sunday. The Bronco Invite is one of only two events remaining on the fall schedule. The national championships for collegiate shooting sports takes place in the spring. The ACUI National Championships will be held March 21-29 in San Antonio, Texas.
Said Moniot, “We’re making up ground and heading in the direction we need to head in. I tell the kids, ‘Don’t worry about the winning.’ Keep looking at the positives. We’re a young team. We’ll put it all together when it’s time to put it all together. It’s pretty encouraging as a coach. All in all it was a great weekend.”