22 students at Camden High School have been taking aim at a different type of high school sport this spring. The Camden Blue Devils Clay Target team recently started its first season of competition in partnership with the Camden Rod and Gun Club.
All practices and competitions are held off-campus at the Club under the supervision of head coach Andrew Crossman, who represents the club, and assistant coach Mason Swancott, who represents the District. They are joined by a dedicated group of club members who are trained in proper techniques, range safety procedures and range supervision.
Each week of the season, the team is competing remotely against other schools across the state in their conference of the New York State Clay Target league. Some examples of schools in the region that have a team include Remsen, APW, Central Square, Liverpool, Sandy Creek, South Lewis, and Stockbridge Valley. At the end of each competition week, scores are added up for each conference and posted.
Camden’s conference in the New York State Clay Target League includes Attica, Berne-Knox-Westerlo, Caledonia-Mumford, Gouverneur, Midlakes, and Pioneer. In this conference, the top 18 athletes from each competition week score from each team, and a running season total is kept to determine the overall standings. The Blue Devils currently sit in seventh place through three weeks as the program continues to grow, evolve, and come together.
Through Week 3, Garrett Wines has established himself as the team’s top-scoring male competitor with the fourteenth-highest average score in the conference. Freshman Coriann Swinbourne currently has the 20th-highest average among the conference’s female competitors.
While healthy competition is important, safety and proper practice are emphasized above all because participation in this sport comes with a tremendous responsibility for competitor safety. That responsibility is not taken lightly. Safety briefings are held before each scheduled practice and competition to keep each team member on the same page for a laundry list of safety procedures. Eye protection and hearing protection are mandatory, and each sport-specific movement is carefully monitored and rehearsed to avoid accidents. In addition, a trained Range Safety Officer is always on duty and watching each student closely. That officer maintains full authority to start and stop activity on the range.
To Swancott, this new program gives students a chance to be part of a team, improve their skills, and learn life lessons along the way. “It’s a lot of fun and it’s enjoyable,” Swancott said. “This is a great opportunity for our student-athletes to be part of a team, especially for students who maybe wouldn’t otherwise be playing a sport in the spring like baseball or softball. We now have this chance to be part of a team and experience competition in a different way.”
