Heiden and Burrows Conquer the Past and Set the Tone of the Future as National Champions

The 2012 Women’s Trap National Champion Rachael Heiden took aim during the final.

The 2012 Men’s and Women’s Trap National Championship was the year of comebacks as U.S. Olympic Training Center (OTC) Resident Athletes Rachael Heiden (Clinton, Mich.) and Brian Burrows(Fallbrook, Calif.) claimed the top of the podium in Colorado Springs.  Last year, Heiden and Burrows entered the finals of Nationals ahead of the competition and faltered to finish third and second respectively.  Both, however, were determined to rewrite history in 2012.

Heiden added a second National Championship title to her growing resume by overtaking Miranda Wilder (Diana, Texas). Wilder and Heiden were tied at 180 targets after three days of competition, but Wilder emerged a target ahead in today’s qualification with 226 targets for the first position in the final. Heiden gave chase in the final with 22/25 targets to secure the gold and a spot on the National Shotgun Team.

“I didn’t know right away.  I dropped the last target and I was looking at the scoreboard to see what the places were, but people were coming up to me and then I knew I was at ease,” said Heiden.  “It was good to come back and I want to thank God, he has helped me get through all of this—it was a tough match.  I am also grateful to my parents and everyone who has supported me.”

Junior shooter Wilder finished with the silver medal at 246 targets, which also solidified her position on the National Shotgun Team.  The bronze medalist was Janessa Beaman (Elbert, Colo.) with 244 targets.  Beaman ascended from fourth to third with the highest final of 23 targets.  She was followed by Kate Bonn (Portland, Ore.) in fourth at 243, Kelsey Zauhar (Lakeville, Minn.) 233 and Victoria Burch (Kerrville, Texas) 231.

Brian Burrows won his first National Title with a three target margin.

Burrows, also fighting the memory of last year’s performance, entered the Men’s Trap final in the first position and didn’t look back.  With 267 total targets—and a clean break on the 25th target in the final—Burrows finished with a three target lead and couldn’t have been happier with his first National Title.

“I had unfinished business from last year,” said Burrows.  “I knew I wanted to solidify it and throw the hammer down and hit it for last year and hit it for this year and end on a positive note.  It was a great match—I couldn’t have done it without the support of my family and friends.  I’ve been working with a couple of new coaches and I can’t thank them enough for all the help.”

Veteran shooter Lance Bade (Vancouver, Wash.) proved he still has the magic touch.  Tied with Resident Athlete Jake Turner (Richland, Wash.) at 264 targets, Bade won the silver in a two target shoot-out and Turner finished with bronze.  Collin Wietfeldt (Hemlock, Mich.) shot 21 targets in the final for 261 targets.  He was followed by Jake Wallace (Castaic, Calif.) in fifth at 259 and John Mullins (Port Orchard, Wash.) at 253 targets.

In the Junior Women’s Trap final, Erin Danhausen (Swartz Creek, Mich.) won the gold medal with 232 targets.  Ashley Carroll (Solvang, Calif.) finished with 228 targets for the silver medal and Kayle Browning (Wooster, Ark.) won the bronze with 224 targets.  Rebekah Lowen (Hillsboro, Mo.) was fourth at 218 targets followed by Brandi Hobbs (Edinboro, Pa.) in fifth.

Resident Athlete Matt Gossett (Springville, Ala.) won the Men’s Trap Junior National Title with 254 targets for a four target lead on the competition.  The silver medalist was Bradley Beckmann (Chesterfield, Mo.) at 250 targets and Dakotah Richardson (Godley, Texas) finished with the bronze medal.  Fellow Resident Athlete Garrett Walters (Burr Oak, Mich.) finished in fourth with 248 targets followed by Lynwood Harris (Camilla, Ga.) at 247 and Nicholas Scholz (Fenton, Mo.) at 245 targets.

Complete rankings and results can be found on the Match Information page.  The shotgun competition continues on July 10 with the National Junior Olympic Shooting Championships.  For more information and the schedule of events, please click here.