On Saturday, May 20, the William Kelley High School Trap Team, known as the “Silver Bay Clay Busters”, will travel to Hibbing to compete in the 7th Annual Hibbing Blue Jackets Clay-Busting Invitational. The Silver Bay Clay Busters will compete with 110 other shooters from area high schools.
The Silver Bay Clay Busters team was formed in 2015 by Head Coach Al Klotzbach, and is part of the Minnesota State High School League, with the USA High School Clay Target League being the governing entity.
Currently there are 15 student athletes ranging from 6th to 12th grade. Four new team members joined this year: Gordy Goutermont, Berkeley Hoff, Archer Goutermont, and Grady Hoff. 2023 is also the last year for four graduating seniors: Inga Lakey, Laura Sullivan, Sam Peterson, and Chace Hipple.
For two years, the team has placed second in conference, and for the five years before that, the Silver Bay Clay Busters were first in conference. In 2019, Thomas Rowle was nominated to the Minnesota All State Team and competed in the Minnesota State High School League State Tournament against 99 other top male high school trap shooters in the state. In 2020, Connor Sullivan was named to the Minnesota All State Team, and both Rowle and Sullivan finished their senior seasons as Conference Champions.
2019 was a very good year for the Silver Bay Clay Busters, with the team holding the top three male shooters in the Conference (Thomas Rowle, Connor Sullivan, and Nick Rieneccius), and Lilly Lewis became the first ever William Kelley female to be named Conference Champion, a title also held by Laura Sullivan in 2021. In 2022, Laura Sullivan and Sam Peterson finished third in their respective female and male categories, and were awarded 3rd Place Conference Medals at the Clay Target Championship in Alexandria.
Two members of the Silver Bay Clay Busters have even traveled to compete at the National Tournament in Mason, Michigan: Connor Sullivan in 2018 and 2019, and Sam Peterson in 2022.
The Silver Bay Clay Busters are coached by their founder, Al Klotzbach. Tom Sullivan, Steve Clark, and Bill McKinney serve as assistant coaches.
Two practices are held each week, but only one is required so long as team members shoot 50 scoring targets per week. Practices began on March 31 and will conclude for the spring on May 21. The season finishes on June 12 with the team shooting at the Clay Target Championship in Alexandria.
7th grader Archer Goutermont says of trap shooting, “It’s fun, but the weather hasn’t been very nice. So we haven’t got to shoot as much as I would like! I’m excited to go to Alexandria.”
8th grader Cooper Goutermont adds, “This is my second year, and I like competing against the other people in the league. Trap shooting is one of my favorite things to do.”
Best wishes to the Silver Bay Clay Busters as they travel to Hibbing! Shoot for the stars and hit your goals!
