Thursday, April 26, 2018

MCAC and USA High School Clay Target League Form Partnership


MINNESOTA  –  The Minnesota College Athletic Conference (MCAC) has teamed up with the League to offer a  new sanctioned varsity sport - Clay Target - to begin in Fall 2018.

Trap shooting is the shooting sport of choice for the MCAC’s Clay Target offering, in which a team of 5 take turns shooting at clay targets traveling at over 40mph. Students will compete ‘virtually’ by shooting at their local shooting range and uploading their scores to the League for tracking.

Clay Target is fully Title IX compliant with both male and female athletes competing on the same team. Additionally it’s an ‘adaptive’ sport, which allows students with physical disabilities to take part.

The League is assisting the MCAC to craft the Clay Target Sports Code to help form the program, and will provide leadership, administration, and interactive support. A 6-week fall season will start in late-August and conclude with the MCAC Clay Target Championship in mid-October.

As a part of their status as a varsity sport within the Conference, participating Minnesota College Athletic Conference colleges will require student athletes to complete a minimum number of enrollment credits and meet GPA standards to participate on a team.

“With the success of the USAHSCTL, we have always envisioned the League growing to provide shooting sport programs for colleges,” said League Vice-President John Nelson. “Our partnership with the MCAC is just the first of an exciting new path of post-secondary education and activity opportunities for graduating high school student athletes that have enjoyed the Clay Target League for so many years.”

MCAC Executive Director Peter Watkins notes that Clay Target offers a chance to engage a new population for the athletic departments of colleges. “It allows schools to expand their ‘brand’ and school pride to a whole new population in and around their communities.” Watkins said. “Clay Target student athletes and their families are connecting with the school, buying sweatshirts, coming onto campus more often, and learning about the education options at the colleges, much like we see in other sport populations.”

The USA High School Clay Target League is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and the independent provider of shooting sports as an extracurricular co-ed and adaptive activity for high schools and students in grades 6 through 12. The organization’s priorities are safety, fun, and marksmanship – in that order. Nationwide, nearly 22,000 student athletes representing over 800 school-approved teams participate in the League.

The Minnesota College Athletic Conference is comprised of over 20 public, two-year Community and Technical Colleges across the state of Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin, and is committed to providing an engaging and supportive environment for success of our student athletes and competition among member institutions.

No comments:

Post a Comment