Ben Stoeger Takes Production Title At USPSA Area 5 Championship

Photo by P. Erhardt

SEDRO-WOOLLEY, Wash. – After finishing in second place the last two years, Ben Stoeger of Eau Claire, Wis. claimed the top prize in the Production division this weekend in the U.S. Practical Shooting Association’s Area 5 Regional Handgun Championship at the PASA Park ranges in Barry, Ill.

Stoeger finished second on the first stage of the match but quickly claimed the lead with a win on the following stage and never looked back as he led the field of 77 shooters through the remaining 12 stages. Stoeger won the Production title with seven total stage wins and a final score of 1484.63.49.

“Ben’s been a strong contender here at the Area 5 Championship and it’s good to see his hard work pay off with the title win this year,” said Gary Stevens, the USPSA Area 5 director.

Canadian Jean-Philippe Drolet of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec finished second and over 147 out of first with a final score of 1337.2953 points. Kyle Farris of Powell, Ohio took third with 1329.2801 points. Drolet and Farris each won a stage.

Rounding out the top five were Team CZ’s Matt Hopkins of Kansas City, Mo. in fourth with two stage wins and a score of 1325.4941 and SGT Lee Dimaculangan of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit in fifth with 1318.2298 points.

Also claiming titles in the Production division were Nancy Huspek of St. Paul, Minn. who took the Women’s title with 960.2666, Darren Leskiw of Sedalia, Mo. who finished 18th overall to win the Senior title with 992.0629 and Stephan Hobson of St. Petersburg, Fla. who finished with 717.3630 and the Super Senior title.

The Area 5 Regional Handgun Championship took place June 16-19 and drew 359 shooters from across the U.S., including Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and Wisconsin, the states that make up the Area 5 region.

The Area 5 match is the second of eight regional events on the USPSA competition calendar. The next regional event is the 2011 USPSA Area 1 Regional Handgun Championship, Presented by Springfield Armory which takes place June 22-26 at Albany Rifle and Pistol Club, Shedd, Ore.

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