The Hillsdale College shotgun team is the largest it's ever been as the 2023-24 season fast approaches.
Based on the performance of the athletes who make up the 16-person squad so far, there's a good chance it could be the best ever, as well.
Hillsdale returns all but one competitor from the team it took to the ACUI/SCTP National Championship last season, including three All-Americans – first-teamer Joshua Corbin, a junior, and honorable mention picks Jonathan Calabrese, a junior, and Jackson Sokel, a senior.
Added to that top-notch core are four strong freshmen who give the team a depth of talent it's never had before in its existence.
The growing roster size reflects the realities of National Championship competition. A seven-time national champion at the Division III level, Hillsdale hasn't dropped off in terms of shooting skill since moving up to Division II for the 2022 event, but hasn't placed higher than fifth in the nation since going up a division.
In large part those finishes have come down to size disparity. Hillsdale came into national meet competition in 2023 with 13 competitors, while the four programs that finished ahead of Hillsdale brought 17, 19, 19, and 20 shooters to compete, respectively.
By expanding the roster to 16, Hillsdale is aiming to close that gap and level the playing field with the top programs in the country in their new division.
Despite the bigger roster, Hillsdale isn't prioritizing quantity over quality. Coach Jordan Hintz continues to bring in some of the best shooters in the country and the world to compete at Hillsdale.
That's been proven in competition at the highest levels in the world. Five current or incoming Hillsdale College shotgun team members qualified to represent the United States of America at the ISSF Junior World Championships in South Korea this past July and won four medals, with sophomore Jordan Sapp bringing home two silver medals to lead the way, and Joshua Corbin and incoming freshman Madeline Corbin each bringing home a medal as well.
Sapp and the Corbin siblings also represented the United States in the ISSF Junior World Cup in June in Suhl, Germany, helping the USA win a gold medal in men's team skeet, a silver medal in women's team skeet, and two more individual medals as well.
Hillsdale also has another highlight competitor joining the team in incoming freshman Luke Johnson, who earned one of the highest honors available in the discipline of trapshooting in 2021 by being named ATA Grand American Singles Champion.
With some of the best shooters in the world taking aim for the Chargers this year, hopes are high.
Hillsdale opens the 2023-24 campaign on Aug. 20 with the Island Lake Grand Prix in Brighton, Michigan, before hosting the Charger Classic at Halter Shooting Sports Center on Aug. 26. The Charger Classic is one of three home events for Hillsdale this season, along with the Michigan College Championships on Nov. 4 and the Hillsdale Invitational on Feb. 24, 2024.
For the Chargers, everything builds toward the 2024 ACUI/SCTP Nationals, beginning on March 18 in San Antonio, Texas, but there are several big events along the way.
Another highlight for Hillsdale is the ACUI/SCTP International Championships and Upper Midwest Conference Championship beginning on Oct. 4, where the Chargers will look to defend another national collegiate title it won in international shooting disciplines at the event in 2022.
You can find the full schedule for the 2023-24 season at this link.