It was a tough day for the Patriots, but the Pinewood Christian Academy (PCA) Clay Target team persevered in competition this past weekend, as they traveled to Forest City Gun Club on Saturday, September 24, 2022, to compete in their third season meet. PCA went up against ten other teams, finishing sixth.

One hundred and sixty-one shooters took to the courses, shooting 200 targets – 100 sporting clay, 50 skeet and 50 trap targets. The Patriots shot well on the skeet and trap courses, but the sporting clay course proved to be a big challenge. Pinewood placed 6th in team competition with a cumulative score of 843.

Teams finishing ahead of Pinewood were Benedictine, who placed first with a team score of 915. Following in place order were Savannah Christian with 904, Savannah Country Day School with 891, Tattnall Square with 885, and Gatewood with 884.

Team scoring is determined by adding the scores of the top five shooters from their respective teams.  Pinewood’s top five shooters and their scores were Miles Hendrix 189, CJ Strickland 166, Abi Pazderski 165, Ethan Stavriotis 162, and Barrett Wilbanks 161.

In High Overall (HOA) individual scoring for the tournament, Connor Daniel of Savannah Christian took first with a cumulative score of 192, and Owen Haas from Savannah Country Day took the second, busting 191 clays for the day. Pinewood’s Hendrix placed third with a cumulative individual score of 189.

Bright spots of the competition included Hendrix, who ran the trap competition, busting 50 out of 50 clays. CJ Strickland hit 25 straight on skeet, as well as first year shooter Wyatt Dasher, who shot his first 25 straight on skeet.

“The sporting clay course was really tough, but the team pushed through. I’m proud of how they kept fighting. This is just another step for us to improve and prepare for State,” PCA Clay Target Team Head Coach Jarin Lewis said.

The Patriots’ final pre-state competition meet will be held at Forest City Gun Club on Saturday, October 29.