Trojan trapshooters set for state

WORTHINGTON -- They don't look like your average varsity team.

Then again, most high school athletes don't carry shotguns, either.

The Worthington trapshooting varsity features four boys and a girl, all of whom prefer shooting clay targets more than three-pointers.

"Actually, I like this better," said senior Nick Hanten, who tried a number of sports at Worthington before he found trapshooting. "It's fun, because I like like the outdoors, hunting and everything."

Not only does Hanten like it -- he's pretty good at it, too.

He and his teammates will have a chance to prove just how good on Sunday at the Minnesota State High School Trapshooting Tournament.

"It's just a lot more packed, and sometimes more pressure," Hanten said of the atmosphere at state, which he experienced last year. "But, it's just fun to go up there and watch other people shoot."

That's something the Trojans don't usually get to do.

They normally shoot in the cozy confines of their own Worthington Gun Club, and compare their scores with their opponents over the Internet.

It's a concept that seven schools came up with last year when WHS joined the "Out-State Conference," which also features Elk River, Prior Lake, White Bear Lake, St. Francis, Brainerd and Sibley.

A few "Metro Conference" schools had shooting teams before last year, but the distance didn't allow for town schools like Worthington to join the league.

So the Out-State teams decided to compete at their own, remote locations for five weeks before the state tournament.

Sunday should be a little different for the Trojans. Officials are expecting more than 200 competitors from 13 different schools.

"Mentally, it's probably going to be a shock," said Worthington's Chris Kruse, who coaches the Trojans with Scott Oberloh and Aaron Sieve. "They're planning on media attention, plus parents, so there's probably going to be 600 people watching them.

"I just tell them it takes five seconds. You've got to block everything out for five seconds, concentrate on breaking your bird and do it again."

"We try to tell them to look ahead and not behind them," laughed Mary Oberloh, the Trojans' official statkeeper (and proud coach's wife).

The crowd isn't the only thing the Trojans will have to adjust to on Sunday. The constant southwest Minnesota winds won't be blowing there, either -- for better or worse.

"They're used to shooting right into the wind, or having the wind right behind them," Oberloh said.

It takes quite a few people to get a fledgling trapshooting program up-and-running, but with the help of local outdoors and sportsmen's groups, Worthington is at the forefront of what might be the fastest growing high school sport in Minnesota.

The Trojans brought eight shooters to last year's state trapshooting tournament. They'll be taking 18 to the Minneapolis Gun Club this year.

"Our numbers basically doubled," Kruse said. "Actually, statewide it doubled, as well."

Round Lake added two shooters to this year's squad, and Kruse hopes to get other surrounding communities involved.

"If anybody wants to shoot, everybody is welcome," he said. "If you don't have a gun, we'll get a hold of one you can use. I'll do whatever I can to help get you started."

That's not the only thing Kruse and Worthington's other coaches have helped their shooters with.

With each round of 25 targets, the Trojans have shown consistent improvement over the past two seasons.

"When I started, I was probably shooting about 16, 17," Hanten said. "Now, I'm averaging probably 23 or 24."

Hanten, Dallas Balk, Jacob Oberloh, Anna Tims and Kody VanEde will make up the Trojans' No. 1 varsity team on Sunday; while Jordon Honken, Tyler Honken, Isaac Kruse, Ricky Prins and Kyle Spessard will team up on the No. 2 varsity.

Trapshooting has two more divisions, too: junior varsity and novice.

The Trojans' JV is comprised of Nathan Ebbers, Levi Leach, Jacob Phillips, Phillip Rohrbauck and Jake VanGrouw.

Mike Hillesheim, Brad Jansma, Corinne Oberloh and Sabrine Klein are the Trojan novices.

Worthington won all but one head-to-head matchup during the regular season. And according to Kruse, his shooters might not have even peaked yet -- a good sign for state.

"Last year, we went to shoot up there (at state), and every kid we brought shot their best score," he said. "We're hoping to do the same thing this year, and we've got some high hopes.

"We'll try and bring home some hardware."

1/2: MICHAEL BRAUER/DAILY GLOBE Worthington's Nick Hanten (left) and Jake VanGrouw (right) are the lone seniors on the Trojan trapshooting squad.

2/2: MICHAEL BRAUER/DAILY GLOBE Worthington's Anna Tims takes aim at a clay target during the Trojan trapshooting team's final practice before Sunday's state tournament in Minneapolis.