Category: Sports

Junior shooters are all in when it comes to the competition and camaraderie they gain from their high school trap, skeet and sporting clays teams.

The beginning of the school year means a return to the classroom – and the start of fall sports. The new season also means local high school shooting teams will be back at Pinetucky Gun Club in Blythe when competitions begin this month.

Founded in 1986 by a group of people that enjoyed skeet shooting, Pinetucky started a junior program, which grew out of the Columbia County 4-H Club, through the Georgia Independent School Association in 2015.

“The activity in the junior program has been fantastic for us,” says Charles Dolan, past president and current vice president of the Pinetucky board of directors.

Confidence & Competition

Most of the juniors are age 12 or older, and they participate in organized events through entities such as GISA and the Scholastic Clay Target Program. While 650 young shooters from 45 schools throughout Georgia participate in GISA events, 840 shooters take part in SCTP competitions.

Nine area schools field GISA teams — Evans, Lakeside, Aquinas and North Augusta high schools; Augusta Preparatory Day School; Episcopal Day School; Westminster Schools of Augusta; Columbia Middle School and Thomas Jefferson Academy. In addition, Augusta Christian Schools competes through the South Carolina Independent School Association.

The shooters represent their individual schools in GISA or SCISA events and compete together as the Pinetucky Pullits in the SCTP, which is the official feeder program to USA Shooting and a path to the U.S. Olympic Shooting Team.

GISA events run from the beginning of the school year through early winter, and Pinetucky will hold the first of four GISA competitions on August 20. Pinetucky continues shooting events with SCTP from January through early summer.

The events take place on Saturdays, and participants shoot in three disciplines – trap, skeet and sporting clays. They shoot at 50 targets each in trap and skeet as well as 100 sporting clay targets. Shooters get their scores by adding up their total in each of the three disciplines.

“We set it up as a team event,” says Dolan. “The game mirrors golf quite a bit.”

Although trap and skeet shooting started as bird hunting simulations, they have grown into full-blown sports.

In trap shooting, clay targets are launched from trap houses into the air at varying angles and travel away from the shooter.

Skeet shooters go from station to station on a semi-circular field, and the goal is to hit two clay targets that are crossing one another. Two target machines are placed 40 meters apart – one at the high house, which is 10 feet high, and one at the low house, which is 3 1/2 feet high. Both targets rise to a maximum height of 15 feet by the time they reach the center of the field.

Sporting clays is considered one of the most realistic bird hunting simulations. Sometimes referred to as “golf with a shotgun,” this discipline involves shooting on a scenic course with varying terrain. The target’s speed, angle and distance differ with each station.

Students use shotguns in all youth events. Safety, responsibility and sportsmanship are the main focus of their development, followed by shooting.

“They want to build their confidence and their shooting ability, but safety is number one,” Dolan says.

Fun, Focus and Friends

Two 18-year-old participants, Kinzie Louthan of Martinez and Jackson Ansley of Augusta, who graduated from Augusta Christian and Aquinas, respectively, in the spring, appreciate the emphasis on safety.

“The number one thing is gun safety,” says Louthan. “Before any practice or any tournament, we always have a safety meeting and go over the basics.”

“We focus on eyes and ears, which is your glasses and ear buds,” Ansley adds. “Keep the muzzle in a safe direction, and don’t put your finger on the trigger until you’re ready to shoot.”

Louthan started shooting at the end of her sophomore year in high school when she went to Pinetucky with her younger brother, and she started shooting competitively during her junior year.

“I wanted to try it. It was actually fun,” says Louthan. “I love competing. It’s one of my favorite things. You have to focus, but you can’t focus so much that you start missing. You have to have fun.”

Ansley took up shooting his freshman year in high school. “I decided this was my hobby and this was what I enjoyed doing,” he says. “I enjoy the challenge. I do a lot of hunting and fishing in my spare time, but I wanted to venture out. I fell in love with it the first time I did it.”

The two shooters try to practice once or twice a week to maintain their skills, and both of them are in the freshman class at Augusta University, where Pinetucky hopes to start a shooting program. Louthan and Ansley would like to be part of that team as well.

However, they enjoy the social aspect of the activity as much as or more than the competition.

“When you’re competing, you’re also meeting new people,” says Louthan. “I just love the people. It’s like a whole new family. It’s fun talking to people who like the same sport as you.”

“I like the aspect of growing and challenging myself to become a better shooter, but I’m a social person. I love meeting new people,” Ansley says.

Dolan says the sport is becoming more popular, and he likes to see the juniors “grow, prosper and have a good time.”

“It raises their maturity level,” he says. “They meet a whole new group of people. They learn how to interact with others. They become young adults. They’re becoming accountable. They mix and mingle with adults.”

Equipped for All

Pinetucky not only holds events for junior shooters, however. The club also is the site of two or three sporting clay events throughout the year as well as pistol and rifle competitions for adults. In addition, Pinetucky hosted several International Olympic shooting teams for training prior to the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

Promoting firearms safety and hunter education for all ages, Pinetucky is affiliated with the National Skeet Shooting Association, National Sporting Clays Association, U.S.A. Shooting, International Benchrest Shooters, IDPA and the National Rifle Association.

The facility has five trap and skeet fields, a 15-station sporting clays course, a fully equipped NRA-approved state-of-the-art pistol range and a fully equipped modern rifle range. While the club is a public facility, it also offers memberships.

“Anyone can come and shoot,” says Dolan. “We have instructors available in all different disciplines.”

The staff offers instruction in shotgunning, rifle and pistol marksmanship, hunter safety, Women On Target (an introductory pistol class for women) and coaching classes for youth.

Instructors are certified by the NRA or the National Sporting Clay Association, and all instruction is by appointment. Special group sessions also are available.

By Todd Beck

A 12-year-old Evans resident is part of the elite 18-player roster to represent Team USA in the Baseball World Cup in Taiwan.

It seems like Greenbrier Middle School seventh grader Colin Anderson constantly has to adjust his goals. His latest? To bring back a gold medal for the United States from the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U-12 Baseball World Cup in Tainan, Taiwan.

Colin was named by USA Baseball to the 18-player roster for the 2022 12U National Team on July 1. When he found out he made the team, he says, “I just started crying because that was a big goal.”

Even if he hadn’t made the team, however, Colin, 12, who plays travel baseball year-round for the Savannah-based Next Level Prospects, already was in select company.

After competing in the Futures Invitational in June with hundreds of other players in Cary, North Carolina, he was one of only 36 players nationwide to be invited to the 2022 USA Baseball 12U National Team Trials, also in Cary, from June 27 – July 1.

“Originally, I just went there to try to make the top 36,” says Colin. “Once I got invited to the top 36, I got really excited.”

‘A Great Experience’

The 12U National Team will be one of a dozen teams from around the globe to compete in the Baseball World Cup July 29 – August 7.

One group of teams includes the United States, Guam, Dominican Republic, Korea, Japan and the Czech Republic.

The other group is made up of Chinese Taipei (the home team and defending world champions), Mexico, Venezuela, Italy, South Africa and Panama.

Team USA opened its World Cup schedule on Friday, July 29 against the Czech Republic.

“The games are being streamed on the WBSC YouTube channel, and they also will be picked up by ABC or CBS,” says Colin’s mother, Bree Anderson.

Colin, who started playing baseball when he was 5 years old, is excited about the opportunity to represent the United States in the Baseball World Cup.

“I have no words. The best thing in baseball is to represent your country,” he says. “It’s a great experience for me to play on television like the MLB players do, and it’s great to meet the other players.”

They have had ample opportunity to bond with each other as Team USA traveled to Stockton, California, for training on July 19 before leaving for Taiwan on July 23. Nine states are represented on the team, and Colin is the only player from Georgia on the roster.

Before he left town, he said he was looking forward to “the experience, the people I get to meet and playing in a bigger tournament than usual. Being on TV in general is cool, especially when you’re 12.”

Although Colin, who bats and throws right-handed, plays primarily first base and third base for the Prospects, he likely will play centerfield for Team USA.

“When balls get hit to the gap, you get to dive to get them,” he says of the outfield position.

He likes playing third base as well. “I have a really good glove and good hands,” says Colin, who made the All-State team in Georgia last year. “You get to jump and catch.”

He brings much more than his defensive skills to the team, however.

“He’s a big hitter,” says Bree.

After all, with a batting average of .544, according to his PerfectGame.org profile, it’s not surprising that he’s happiest when he’s standing at home plate with a bat in his hands.

(Perfect Game is the premier provider of amateur baseball events, hosting the highest quality travel team tournaments and individual showcase events throughout the country. PG collaborates with Major League Baseball and other baseball partners to grow the game, and its database, scouting reports and player rankings are a valuable resource for college coaches and MLB scouts.)

“Hitting is probably my favorite,” says Colin. “When you’re fielding and there are two outs in the bottom of the eighth or ninth (inning), there’s less pressure on making a play than hitting.”

Sweat Equity

Colin has had plenty of support in his young baseball career, but playing for a Savannah-based team hasn’t always been easy.

“My parents are super nice and great, and they take me to mandatory practices and games,” he says.

His mom and dad aren’t the only ones who have pitched in to help him succeed, however. His friends are rooting for him as well.

“They’re excited for me to go play and represent my country across the whole world,” he says.

Colin also is invested in the budding baseball careers of his two younger brothers, ages 5 and 8. “One of my goals is for them to be as good or better than me,” he says.

“There’s been a lot of sweat from all of us,” Bree says. “But it’s been totally worth it.”

Perhaps that sweat equity will pay off in the medal games on August 7 when Colin hopes Team USA will play for – and win – the gold medal. He also hopes to get better at the sport itself so he can achieve yet another goal of playing Major League Baseball one day.

“The game is super fun and amazing, and the people you meet help you achieve bigger goals in your life,” says Colin.

In the meantime, though, he has other things on his plate with the rare opportunity to compete for a world championship.

The Baseball World Cup takes place every two years, but this is a makeup year from 2021 because of covid. This is the sixth edition of the youth baseball world championship, and the United States, winning consecutive gold medals in 2013, 2015 and 2017, has a world-best three titles at the U-12 level.

By Todd Beck

Lots of local talent helped the 1962 Georgia Southern Eagles soar to the NAIA baseball title.

John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth. Marilyn Monroe sang a breathy rendition of “Happy Birthday” to President Kennedy at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. Spider-Man first appeared in a comic book, and the Cuban Missile Crisis led to fears of a full-scale nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union.

These events were on the world stage in 1962, but the baseball team at Georgia Southern College (now Georgia Southern University) in Statesboro, Georgia was making its own dramatic headlines as well. Overcoming adversity to post a 13 – 7 regular season record, the Eagles advanced to the regional National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics district finals and ultimately claimed a national title 60 years ago this month.

Driven to Excel
The roster featured a number of players from Columbia and Richmond counties including Harlem High School graduates Pierce Blanchard and E.G. Meybohm. The Academy of Richmond County also was represented by Tommy Howland, Charles Tarpley, Buzzy McMillan, Bill Griffin, Miller Finley and Larry Crouch.

When Blanchard, Meybohm or Crouch was pitching, six players in the starting lineup were from the Augusta area.

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the team’s national championship, but with many underclassmen on the roster, there were few expectations for the Eagles to excel. However, the players’ determination and resolve, coupled with their talent, paved the road to Georgia Southern’s first sports national championship. In fact, it is reported by some to be the first national championship by any college team in the state.

“We had a team that believed in teamwork, no super-stars, a lot of camaraderie, and we played hard with a great desire to win,” says Meybohm.

At one point, however, the Eagles’ post-season hopes appeared to be grounded before they ever took flight. In mid-May, after finishing a two-game road trip at Florida State University, the team bus was in a serious collision with a tractor trailer just outside of Tallahassee. Several team members were badly hurt, and a few required hospitalization.

Coach J.I. Clements called a team meeting to find out if his players wished to continue with the season after so many of their teammates had been injured. The team vote was a resounding “yes,” which was the beginning of turning a mishap into a major success.

Playoff Time
Hosting the NAIA District 7 Tournament, the Eagles lost their first game to Pfeiffer College of North Carolina. Having to win three games in one day seemed an impossibility. The boys from the “Boro,” as the town was known, started in the early morning and finished at dusk in a stadium with no lights.

GSC defeated Carson Newman in the first game and went on to topple Pfeiffer in the next two games to capture the District 7 title. Winning three games and playing 27 innings of baseball in one day was a major stepping stone for this championship-bound team.

Advancing to the NAIA National Championship playoffs in St. Joseph, Missouri, June 5 – 9, GSC handily defeated Minot State, 9 – 3, when Blanchard took the mound and allowed only three hits. David Bell was the winning pitcher in Game 2 as the Eagles handed Winona a 1 – 0 loss. Game 3 saw Meybohm hurl a six-hitter while besting Portland State, 5 – 2.

Allowing just five hits, Blanchard picked up his second tourney win in Game 4 when Georgia Southern beat Portland State again in a 2 – 0 victory that earned the Eagles the championship.

When their bus returned to the Georgia Southern campus, the players were greeted by a large contingent of well-wishers including students, faculty and community.

“Playing on this team was a true life lesson in what can be accomplished through hard work and teamwork,” Blanchard says.

By Lamar Garrard