News

By Ryan Schlehuber, MCC Sportswriter

Coming off a successful season and having three of its five shooters from last year return, the Montcalm Community College Centurions clay target team is aiming to continue to raise the bar of expectations. 

Last year, the team was coached by a two-man assistant coach committee, Bob Pickel and Chris Henry, but this year, Henry has taken over head coaching duties. He takes over a team of seven shooters that should be well balanced with experience, new blood and plenty of potential to repeat what the team accomplished last year or even eclipse it. 

MCC gradually improved throughout last season and peaked at the end, which allowed the Centurions to earn a league title, finish second at the state tournament and earn a showing at the USA Clay Target Trap Nationals, where two of its shooters finished in the top five. Henry is hoping to use that formula again this year. 

“Last year, we peaked at the right time going into tournaments,” Henry said. “This year, I hope everyone peaks when we hit our tournament schedule like we did last year, and I think we can do better than last year. It’s all just a matter of timing.” 

The team includes returning shooters Jack McBride (Portland, Mich.), Chase Merritt (Greenville, Mich.) and Evan Plonka (Lenox, Mich.) along with newcomers Collin Sutton (Levering, Mich.), Logen Steffen (Lowell, Mich.), Liam Jensen (Carson City, Mich.) and Hunter Doolittle (Crystal, Mich.).  

Henry said three of his four newcomers are well-rounded shooters with good experience at the high school level. Doolittle’s emphasis is trap, but he is learning the other disciplines now while the other three freshmen are fairly good with all disciplines, according to Henry. 

Henry believes if his shooters can improve each week, the team can gradually build up to championship-level competition by tournament time. The key to that, however, is patience. 

“You can’t rush the kids along. They have to come along at their own pace,” Henry said. “Every kid is different and each of them learn at a different pace.” 

The Centurions’ returning shooters will play a vital role in getting the freshmen to where they need to be by tournament time. Henry said Merritt has been the vocal leader of the team so far, welcoming in the freshmen and making them feel as part of the team right away. 

“Chase goes out of his way to talk to the freshmen,” Henry said. “Evan is more of our leader by example.” 

Merritt believes engaging with the freshmen right away gets the team closer to where it wants to be quicker. 

“My approach is getting the team to perform well together,” Merritt said. “I want to welcome everyone and build a strong foundation between all of us so we can perform well together as a team and support each other as a team, too.” 

Merritt’s expectations for this season are simple, and that is for everyone to perform at their best. 

“But also, to be a team, no matter the outcome of the competition,” Merritt added. 

The Centurions participated in Reserve Week, Friday, Sept. 19, which results from the event will be used as tiebreakers at the end of the season, if they’re needed. It also got the team going as MCC readies for the opening week of the season, which is Friday, Sept. 26. 

MCC will have Competition Week for the next four weeks and will then prepare for the Hoosier Classic Fall Invitational at Fulton County Gun Club in Rochester, Ind., Saturday, Oct. 18.  

Henry knows, with last year’s success leading to bigger expectations this year, the pressure on his shooters will be there from the start. However, he believes his team will respond well. 

“I think we’re going to hit the ground running,” Henry said. “We’re going to do well in trap and we have one person learning skeet and everyone was learning new disciplines last year. I think we’ll do well in conference.” 

Merrit said he and his teammates are all on the same level as far as expectations go. He remembers the ups and downs from last year as he developed his skills to meet junior college levels and, from that, he is applying what he learned last year to this year. 

“A thing that I learned from last year is we all have good days and bad days,” he said. “I learned we can’t beat ourselves up for missing a target.” 

Henry said he is already loving the team as all his shooters, returning and new, have responded well as they approach the beginning of the season. 

“The strongest quality, as a team, is that they’re all pretty coachable,” Henry said. “They all get along well and I love them as a team.” 

UP NEXT: The Centurions will begin the season with Competition Week No. 1, in which MCC shooters will shoot rounds at the Flat River Conservation Club in Greenville, Friday, Sept. 26 with a 4:30 p.m. start time. 

RESERVE WEEK RESULTS 

(A 25 is a perfect score in both categories) 

TRAP SHOOT 

ATHLETE               RND 1      RND 2      TOTAL 

Jack McBride         24            25           49 

Logen Steffen        25            23           48 

Collin Sutton          23            25           48 

Hunter Doolittle      24            23           47 

Evan Plonka           23            24           47 

Chase Merritt         24            21           45 

Liam Jensen           21           23            44 

SKEET SHOOT 

ATHLETE                RND 1      RND 2       TOTAL 

Evan Plonka           23            23            46 

Logen Steffen         23           23             46 

Jack McBride          22           20             42 

Chase Merritt         19           21             40 

Liam Jensen          20           19             39 

Collin Sutton         17           20             37 

Hunter Doolittle     17           19             36