Sharpshooters bring home host of hardware

Jake Weyker keeps a song in his head. Nothing in particular; just anything he recently heard.

Matt Andersen maintains a clear mind and tries not to not think about the score. He keeps saying “one bird at a time.”

Josh Nett tries to keep the same exact routine each time, telling himself to “keep your head down and stay under the bird.”

Tony Ogren takes a little more time with that first bird to get his head right and relax. After that, he said, “it’s a smooth run.”

Nolan van Ess’ philosophy is “just go out there and shoot ’em.”

No matter their pre-shot routine, it worked for these five members of the Cedar Grove-Belgium High School trap shooting team during this abbreviated season due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The five won the national title in their division in eighth grade and now, five years later, led the team to its best finish ever — winning the state title and earning four top-four places in the national competition against much bigger schools, some six times as large as the Rockets’ 15 members.

In addition, Andersen and Nett were named to the all-state team, which includes the top five athletes from Wisconsin. Nett and van Ess were two of 28 Wisconsin students and 282 across the country named to the all-scholastic team.

Coach Dan Nett said those pre-shot routines are critical. Those few seconds before the four-inch birds take flight at 40 mph headed right, left or down the middle — shooters don’t know where they are when they call it — will determine success or failure, Nett said.

“It’s getting their brain right,” he said.

The focus is deep. Josh Nett said a few weeks ago he shot at a range near Road America while a race was going on. Cars could easily be heard, but Nett heard nothing when he zeroed in on his target.

Despite having less practice than normal — the spring trap season didn’t start until July 1 since schools were closed through June 30 — coach Nett got his five-year-old bucket list completed for these five team members.

He wanted a return to the national podium, which they did four times.

He wanted all five to do a perfect run. The team went 125-for-125 at a regional meet in Iowa. It’s a feat, Nett said, he has seen once in 25 years.

He wanted someone to make the all-state team. Two did.

And Nett wanted a state title. Check.

One of the keys to success this season, he said, was the Sauk Trail Conservation Club in Cedar Grove, where the team practices. While Gov. Tony Evers’ Safer at Home order closed many businesses, shooting ranges were deemed essential and remained open. Nett encouraged team members to join a shooting league. Most team members did, some shooting twice per week.

The club also paid team members to work there, which nearly covered their entrance fees for the national competition.

Practice, Nett said, makes perfect in trap shooting. He recommends about 10,000 rounds per year.

“It’s repetition. There are a lot of good trap shooters. There are few great ones,” Nett said.

While shooters have different styles, the fundamentals are keeping weight forward and arms up, Nett said. Weight training and building stamina helps, he said.

The gun, he said, has to be the right match for the shooter. It has to have the right feel, like a putter in golf.

Handling misses is another element of mental toughness shooters need.

Team member Max Otto takes a few deep breaths before he goes on.

“Everyone misses eventually. You try not to let it cascade,” he said.

It’s exactly what his coach teaches.

“As they progress, you see a lot of disappointment when they miss,” Nett said. “The big thing we say is don’t let two targets turn into 10 targets.”

When they don’t miss, it’s an overwhelming feeling of relief. A perfect run, Otto said, is like “a 5,000-pound weight off your shoulders.”

Hit or miss, team members encourage each other. Team camaraderie is a big part of their success.

The team is a club sport at Cedar Grove-Belgium High School. Team members can letter and they get their photo in the yearbook.

The team is not limited to boys. Eighth-grader Anna Jerabek said her older sister Laura got her involved two years ago.

“It’s for everyone,” Anna said. “I’m not the most athletic so I can do this sport.”

Girls, Nett said, are more coachable.

“They listen. They’re attentive,” he said.

The team is part of the Sheboygan County High School Trap League, which, Nett said, is the oldest organized high school shooting program in the country.

Wisconsin stood tall on a national scale this year, with its all-state team — including Andersen and Josh Nett — placing third. It was the first time the state made the podium.

Wisconsin hit 989 of 1,000 targets, behind Tennessee’s 991-for-1,000 and Illinois’ 990-for-1,000.

Regardless of shooters’ skill levels, coach Nett said, safety always comes first. Of 1 million shots at the national meet in Marengo, Ohio, nobody was injured.

Nett has never seen an injury in 15 years of coaching and 25 years of shooting.

“I have not even heard of an injury,” he said.

Once out of high school, shooters may join college trap teams. Four Cedar Grove-Belgium athletes have received trap scholarships during Nett’s tenure, and he expects more to come.