Scholastic Action Shooting Program Virginia State Championship

The Scholastic Action Shooting Program (SASP) recently held its state championship at the Winchester Izaak Walton League (WIWL) in Winchester, VA. The match had a total of 58 entries across five different shooting disciplines. SASP is a team sport where athletes compete in squads of four. Athletes shoot for time at five steel targets that are arrayed in four different stages.

Athletes from as far as Ohio participated in the Virginia SASP State Championship.

SASP began in earnest in Virginia in 2015 when Team LoCo Motion was established in Purcellville. In 2016, the Winchester Izaak Walton League established the WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets. This year, Liberty University established a collegiate team which took 2nd Place in the SASP Collegiate Nationals in the Spring. A number of new SASP teams are being established in the Commonwealth, with participation in the state championship expected to double next year.

Squad results were:
Rimfire Pistol
Varsity (High School) and Intermediate (Middle School) Divisions
State Champion – WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
2nd Place – Team LoCo Motion

Rimfire Rifle – Iron Sights
Open Division (High School and Middle School mixed)
State Champion – WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
2nd Place – Ross County Steel Ringers
3rd Place – Team LoCo Motion

Rimfire Rifle – Optic
Open Division
State Champion – WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
2nd Place – Ross County Steel Ringers
3rd Place – Team LoCo Motion

Pistol Caliber Carbine
Open Division
State Champion – Team LoCo Motion
2nd Place – WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets

SASP athletes are also recognized at the individual level with high overall awards. Team LoCo Motion Captain Adam Jardines who was the rimfire pistol state champion, became the Commonwealth’s first athlete to compete in the centerfire pistol division.

Individual results were:
Rimfire Pistol
Varsity Division (High School)
State Champion – Ethan Jardines, Team LoCo Motion
2nd Place – Maccoy Gilkison, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
3rd Place – Andrew Sullivan, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets

Ethan Jardines of Team LoCo Motion receiving the rimfire pistol championship cup from Liberty University Head Coach Dave Hartman.

Intermediate Division (Middle School)
State Champion – Alexander Baird, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
2nd Place – Lauren Creese, Team LoCo Motion
3rd Place – Scarlett Leatch, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets

Rimfire Rifle – Iron Sights
Varsity Division
State Champion – Ethan Jardines, Team LoCo Motion
2nd Place – Maccoy Gilkison, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
3rd Place – Talon Morris, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
Intermediate Division
State Champion – Alexander Baird, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
2nd Place – Ayden Wilson, Ross County Steel Ringers
3rd Place – Hayden Thomas, Ross County Steel Ringers

Rimfire Rifle – Optics
Varsity Division
State Champion – Maccoy Gilkison, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
2nd Place – Andrew Sullivan, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
3rd Place – Adam Jardines, Team LoCo Motion

Intermediate Division
State Champion – Alexander Baird, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
2nd Place – Ayden Wilson, Ross County Steel Ringers
3rd Place – Hayden Thomas, Ross County Steel Ringers

Alexander Baird of the Blue Ridge Bullets with Match Director Mark Prater and WIWL Representative Stan Kugler.

Pistol Caliber Carbine
Varsity Division
State Champion – Maccoy Gilkison, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
2nd Place – Andrew Sullivan, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
3rd Place – Jack Bright, Team LoCo Motion

Intermediate Division
State Champion – Alexander Baird, WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets
2nd Place – Lauren Creese, Team LoCo Motion
3rd Place – Walter Davis, Jr., WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets

SASP State Advisor Dr. Eliot Jardines stated, “Our state championship went exceedingly well and it is clear our athletes have come a long way this season. I look forward to a strong performance at SASP Nationals in mid-July. We owe a big debt of gratitude to the Winchester Izaak Walton League for hosting the championship. We certainly could not have asked for better hosts, or more dedicated volunteers. We were honored to have Dave Hartman, the Head Coach of the Liberty University SASP team present awards at the noon ceremony, and representing WIWL for the afternoon awards ceremony was Mr. Stan Kugler.”

Alexander Baird, Maccoy Gilkison, Talon Morris and Andrew Sullivan of the Blue Ridge Bullets receiving their squad awards from Stan Kugler.

As the teams gear up for the new shooting season staring in September, SASP is keenly interested in expanding the program throughout Virginia. Interested parties are encouraged to contact the VA State Advisor at admin@locomotionfoundation.org to learn more about establishing a team, available funding and scholarship opportunities.

Scholastic Action Shooting Program All-State Shooting Team Announced

The Scholastic Action Shooting Program (SASP) has named its All-State Team consisting of the four top high school and middle school athletes in the Commonwealth. SASP was created by the Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation in 2013 and consists of youth ages 10 – college competing in pistol and rifle. Athletes shoot at five steel targets that are arrayed in four different stages while timed. The program currently boasts approximately 1,200 participants across 42 states.

SASP began in Virginia in 2015 when the LoCo Motion Foundation established Team LoCo Motion in Purcellville. In 2016, the Winchester Izaak Walton League established the WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets. Both teams received significant support from Friends of the NRA/NRA Foundation. Three new teams were established in 2018 - two sponsored by the Young Marines and one by the US Naval Sea Cadets. Liberty University established a collegiate SASP team this year.

Athletes were selected for the Virginia SASP All-State Team based on their academic qualifications and achievement at the state and/or national championships this past year. The All-State Team consists of a high school and middle school squad, each with the four fastest athletes in the Commonwealth. All-State athletes for 2018 include:

High School Squad
- Adam Jardines of Purcellville
- Jack Bright of Leesburg
- Andrew Sullivan of Stephens City
- Corinne Whisenant of Middletown

Middle School Squad
- Ethan Jardines of Purcellville
- Talon Morris of White Post
- Maccoy Gilkison of Boyce
- Lauren Creese of Purcellville

SASP State Advisor Eliot Jardines stated, “The SASP program in Virginia has grown tremendously in the past three years, and we are very excited to have so many new teams and competitors. Every member of the 2018 Virginia SASP All-State Team is a nationally ranked athlete who brings great credit upon the sport and the Commonwealth.”

SASP is looking to continue its expansion and interested parties are encouraged to contact the State Advisor at admin@locomotionfoundation.org to learn more about establishing a team, available funding and scholarship opportunities.

Virginia Action Shooting Program Grows

By Eliot Jardines

The Scholastic Action Shooting Program (SASP) has seen significant growth in Virginia this year. SASP was created by the Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation in 2013 and consists of youth ages 10 – college competing in pistol and rifle. Athletes shoot at five steel targets that are arrayed in four different stages while timed. The program currently boasts approximately 1,200 participants nationally and 50 within the Commonwealth.

The SASP program began in earnest in Virginia in 2015 when the LoCo Motion Foundation established Team LoCo Motion in Purcellville. In 2016, the Winchester Izaak Walton League established the WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets. Each of these teams has grown significantly both in terms of numbers as well as competitive prowess. Both teams received significant support from Friends of the NRA/NRA Foundation. Three new teams are being established, two of are sponsored by the Young Marines and one by the US Naval Sea Cadets.

Members of the Blue Ridge Bullets sponsored by the Winchester Izaak Walton League at SASP Nationals.

Team LoCo Motion head coach Eliot Jardines was recently appointed the SASP State Advisor for the Commonwealth. “We are very pleased with the growth of SASP in Virginia. With the help of our steadfast supporters the NRA and the SASP national staff, we were able to pull off the first ever Virginia SASP State Match,” he stated. Held at the NRA Headquarters Range, the state match was contested in the rimfire pistol, rifle-optic and rifle-iron sights divisions. In addition to the two VA teams, an SASP team from Gaston County, North Carolina also participated. In addition to the competition, attendees were given a guided tour of the National Firearms Museum and had a chance to meet newly elected NRA President Oliver North who was on hand to welcome the competitors.

Members of Team LoCo Motion at SASP Nationals.

The culmination of the competitive season is the SASP Nationals in Ohio however and there is where Virginia’s teams have made their presence known. This year’s SASP Nationals had a record 1,200 entries, making it simultaneously the world’s largest youth action shooting event and the largest steel match in history. Given this level of competition, the Commonwealth’s teams achievements were quite remarkable.

Newcomers to Nationals this year, the WIWL Blue Ridge Bullets acquitted themselves quite well with their Intermediate (middle school) rimfire squad placing 18th out of 23 squads. The team also fielded two squads in the open rimfire division (squads with both middle and high school students), which placed 21st and 45th out of 68 squads. At the individual level, Amelia Lunceford placed 10th and Carigan Cogle placing 12th in the ladies Intermediate Advanced Division. Graceleigh, Genevieve and Emmaline Blodgett placing 14th, 18th and 19th respectively in the Intermediate Entry Level Division. On the men’s side, Talon Morris took 7th and Maccoy Gilkison took 12th in the Intermediate Entry Level Division.

Team LoCo Motion returned for its third year to SASP Nationals. The Senior (high school) squad took 9th out of 32 squads in rimfire pistol with the Intermediate squad placing 15th out of 23 squads. At the individual level, team captain Adam Jardines placed 16th in the highly competitive men’s Varsity Division, squad leader Corrine Whisenant taking 6th in the women’s Junior Varsity Division and Jack Bright taking 15th in the men’s JV Division. At the intermediate level, squad leader Ethan Jardines took 5th place in the men’s Intermediate Advanced Division while Lauren Creese likewise took 5th in the women’s IA Division. The team also tried their hand at the new pistol caliber carbine (PCC) discipline and took 5th place in the Open Division.

As the teams gear up for the new shooting season which starts in September, the Scholastic Action Shooting Program will be adding three new teams before the end of 2018. SASP is keenly interested in expanding the program outside of Northern Virginia and interested parties are encouraged to contact the State Advisor at admin@locomotionfoundation.org to learn more about establishing a team, available funding and scholarship opportunities.