Posted: Thursday, Jul 26, 2007 - 02:22:02 am EDT

NEWTOWN, Conn. - Several young trap shooters from Gibson County earned state titles and qualified to represent Indiana at upcoming national championships competing as members of the Evansville Gun Club Youth Team at the Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) Indiana Trap State Championship on July 10 through 15, at the Indiana Trap Club in Fortville, Indiana.

In all, the local shooters of the Evansville team won 12 championships and five second places.

In the Intermediate Division for school grades six to eight, first place went to the Evansville Gun Club 905. On the team was Kyle Kramer and Kurt N. Kramer of Fort Branch, Tyler Maikranz of Princeton, Jamond Heldt of Francisco and Carl Seib of Poseyville.

In the Rookie Division, grades five and under, the first-place team was the Evansville Gun Club 638. Team members are Elijah Muncy of Francisco, John Mark Kissel, Jacob Scott Page and Jordan Koberstein of Princeton and Kasey Kramer of Fort Branch.

Also in the intermediate Division, the team of Ethan Muncy, Jeffrey Koberstien, Adam Weil, Tanner Willis and Eric Ziliak took fourth place.

In the Senior Division, placing sixth were Chas Seiler, Jordan Williamson, Michael Tepool, Stuart DeVault and Kaleb Korn of the local gun club.

Members of the Evansville Gun Club Youth Team also took part in individual competitions.

Aaron Ripple was the 200 Singles Junior Division Champion, while Tyler Maikranz was the Doubles and handicap Sub-Junior Champion, and Seiler was the Singles and Doubles Junior Champion, and overall Non-resident Class A champion.

Second runner-up in the class C-Singles was Kyle Kramer, while Seib won the Sub-Juniors Singles on one day, and was second in the Singles and Doubles category the next. Seib also garnered a runner-up finish in the Doubles Division the final day of the competition by hitting 1107 targets out of a possible 1200.

In the Hall of fame Class, Kyle Kramer, Andy Stidham, Tyler Maikranz and Seib teamed to take the title.

In a father-son competition, Kyle Kramer and his dad Kelly Kramer took third place.

The Evansville Gun Club Youth Team is coached by Wayne Seib, Beau Huelseman, Ron Maikranz, Dennis Williamson and Kelly Kramer.

The trap shooting national championships are slated for Aug. 5-7 at the World Shooting and Recreational Complex in Sparta, Illinois.

Last year, the event attracted more than 1,600 youths from across the nation.

The best of these young shooters could be selected to attend an Olympic development camp in August in Colorado Springs.

SCTP, for youths in grades 12 and under, has been called ‘the Little League of shooting sports.' More than 10,000 students in over 40 states are expected to compete in 2007. A program of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, SCTP is managed in partnership with numerous sponsors, agencies and organizations.