Eric Argall, a high school trapshoot competitor from Thompson, N.D., won the national singles championship during the AIM Grand American Trap Shoot held July 27-Aug. 1 at the World Shooting Complex in Sparta, Ill.
AIM, which stands for “Academics, Integrity and Marksmanship,” is the official youth program of the American Trapshooting Association.
According to Jim Shulind, a Grand Forks shooting coach and instructor, Argall was part of a team of youth shooters from the Grand Forks Gun Club that participated in the competition.
More than 2,500 young shooters from across the U.S., competed in the event, Shulind said.
Argall shot 200 straight out of 200 targets to tie with two others for the overall shoot championship, Shulind said. He then shot another 50 out of 50 straight to win the national championship.
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Thompson High School co-ops with Central in the high school trapshooting program.
The Grand Forks Gun Club’s Junior A squad, consisting of five shooters -- Argall; Bryar Hanson, Central High School; Hunter Deziel, Red River; Ben Christan, Red River; and Jacob Schempp, Larimore High School -- finished second in the team event, Shulind said. They missed 27 targets out of 1,000 to finish second.
“It is satisfying that a group of Grand Forks and North Dakota youth shooters can compete on a national level with other states that shoot 12 months out of the year,” Shulind said.
