Participation
Participants must meet the following eligibility requirements:
- All participants must meet eligibility criteria established by their school.
- All participants are limited to six years of eligibility. Students enrolled at two-year institutions are limited to three years of eligibility; if they transfer to a four-year school, six years total.
- All participants must be between the ages of 18 and 25 years old to compete in ACUI or SCTP collegiate clay targets events. If a participant turns 26 during a season, they may finish competing in that season’s event.
- All undergraduate and graduate student participants must be in good academic standing with their institution in the academic term in which they qualified for the program.
- All participants must be enrolled for the academic term in which they are competing in an event for at least nine credits (six credit hours for graduate students). Seniors who will be graduating at the end of the academic term may be considered eligible if they are taking hours needed to complete their degree. Students who do not meet the enrollment requirements during the semester in which event takes place will not be eligible to compete in that event.
- All undergraduate and graduate student participants must be enrolled as a student in good conduct standing at the institution they represent, as determined by the institution in which they are currently enrolled.
A full list of eligibility requirements can be found on the current season’s Code of Conduct & Eligibility Form published on the website’s Resource Library.
New high school teams and college teams will first want to get their account set up in SCTP’s “SHOT” system before they start the registration process.
- Go to www.mysctp.com.
- Select “coach login” at the top of the page.
- On the next screen, choose “Register Team” (orange box)
- Follow the remaining instructions.
You will not be able to squad your athletes if this is not done. Please do not pay membership fees to SCTP for your athletes and coaches; this will be covered for you through the ACUI/SCTP partnership for athletes and coaches participating in a partnered ACUI/SCTP event. Once you have set up your team and athlete accounts, you can register for events under the “Shoots” tab. If you need assistance processing registration for your team, please email acuiclays@acui.org.
We welcome individual athletes to compete in the Bowl Series! An individual from a school that does not already have a team established may start one, so long as approval to represent their institution is given by a school advisor/representative. Once a team has been set up in the registration system, the individual athlete will be welcome to compete and represent their institution, assuming they meet all other eligibility requirements. All athletes must be affiliated with the institution that signs off on their eligibility form.
No, membership is not required to compete in our events. Membership is only available for college teams and provides a registration discount. Interested in becoming a member of ACUI? Contact acuiclays@acui.org for more information about becoming a member.
ACUI & SCTP competitions are open to any college or higher education institution accredited by the appropriate state and/or regional accrediting agency. For questions about if a school or program meets appropriate accreditations to compete, please email acuiclays@acui.org.
Competition
The event schedule for the season is listed in the current season’s Match Program, which can be found in the Resource Library. Schedules for specific events can be found on their event page, listed in the Event Calendar. Detailed event squadding schedules will be published on the event registration page through the SHOT system. Please note that all schedules posted are tentative and subject to change. Teams are ultimately responsible for their own squadding for each event through the SHOT system.
Payment can be processed through the SHOT system (recommended) for ACUI member pricing only. Non-member and member payments can also be processed over the phone at 812.245.2284 or by a mailed check at ACUI, 520 S Walnut St., Box 2388, Bloomington, IN 47402-2388. Checks and credit cards can be taken on site as well.
Registration changes can be made through the SHOT system by teams up until registration for an event closes. After this deadline, full fees may be charged for cancellations. If you would like to transfer your registration to someone else at no charge after registration for an event has closed, email acuiclays@acui.org. Include your name, your team’s name, and the name/email address of the person to whom you’d like to transfer your registration to.
Squadding is done at the same time as registration through SCTP’s SHOT system.
Individual awards are broken into the following two categories: College Men’s and College Women’s. We award medals for first through third place in each discipline being offered at an event, in each category. Individual Classic All Around Award and Individual High Overall Award are also awarded for first place in each of these categories.
We also award first through third Classic All Around teams and first through third High Overall teams.
For a further breakdown of our awards and what you or your team’s eligibility for them may be, please reference the current season’s Match Program posted in the Resource Library.
Limited ammunition might be available for purchase at the ranges. It is suggested that a team contact the individual ranges for availability of ammunition at least one week prior to the event. The cost of practice and competition ammo is at the expense of the competitor. For American events, follow the appropriate rules listed by the National Governing Bodies (ATA, NSSA, & NSCA) for allowable loads. For International events, please reference the current International Nationals Match Program for information on which ammunition is allowed.
Limited firearm and ammunition storage might be available at the ranges. It is suggested that a team contact the individual ranges directly for availability of storage.
No, all golf cart rentals are handled by the host ranges. Please contact the individual ranges directly for golf cart rental options. If this differs for a specific event, athletes will be notified with procedure for cart rental.
The disciplines offered at each event will vary based on location. At a minimum, all events will offer American Trap, American Skeet, Sporting Clays, and Super Sporting. Different locations will offer Doubles American Trap, Doubles American Skeet, Bunker Trap, or International Skeet based on the ranges available facilities. Please refer to the event pages in the Event Calendar for the course of fire for each event.
Nope! If you’re wanting to qualify for a High Overall Award, you’ll want to plan on shooting all disciplines available, but otherwise we welcome folks to shoot whatever they’d like.
General
Depending on the level of the severity, infractions of the rules or guidelines will be dealt with in the following manner:
- First offense, upon notification of an ACUI or SCTP staff member, the athlete receives a verbal warning and the athlete must remedy the situation to continue competition. If further time or investigation is needed, the athlete will be resquadded for the discipline they are competing in that day if time and fields allow. Should the athlete refuse, they forfeit competition until the issue is resolved to the satisfaction of the match competition staff. No further action would then be required.
- Should further action be required, that could include counsel with ACUI and/or SCTP competition staff, coach or advisor to the team/athlete, and protest committee if one is available at the event.
- Upon second notification of offense, the athlete will receive a one-target deduction in that day’s event. Readdressing the offense will follow the same process as first offense with goal of resolution.
- Upon third notification of offense, the athlete will receive a five-target deduction in that day’s event. Readdressing the offense will follow the same process as first offense with goal of resolution.
- The final result of a concern, with no other resolution reached, would be disqualification from the event and that score voided. Depending on the outcome of the situation and at the discretion of the match ACUI & SCTP staff, the suspension of the athlete from the program for any remaining eligibility entirely may be enacted if necessary.
Event management has the right to adjust these guidelines when deemed necessary.
All coaches, officials, and participants are empowered to stop the line of fire and correct or report a safety violation.
With thousands of participants, there has never been an incidence of violence or a serious firearm accident in the 55+ year history of the ACUI Clay Targets Program. The program has an exemplary safety record.
In the almost 60-year history of organized youth clay target shooting programs there has never been an accident that resulted in a fatality. The insurance actuary tables list the clay target youth and college shooting programs as one of the safest youth and college activities in which students can participate.
We condemn criminal misuse of firearms and believe gun owners have a responsibility to abide by all laws and regulations, including securing their firearms when not in use and ensuring safe handling at all times. Student competitors are often leaders in promoting gun safety. It also is prudent to draw a distinction between the use of a shotgun for club sports on a range designated for that purpose versus using an assault weapon with the intent to do harm on campus.
ACUI has historically offered sports not previously administered by the NCAA or other organizations that are either played within the college union recreation room, other areas of the building, on campus, or at the request of student organizations who would like to compete in the sport.
With 55+ years of competitive shotgun sports history at ACUI, the program has grown from 50 to over 1,000 athletes at the national championship and for years has hosted regional competitions across the country. We hope to continue fostering the growth of youth shooting sports at the collegiate level for many years to come by providing a safe, competitive, and fun program for athletes to participate in!