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.
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 handled for you by ACUI. 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 individuals, teams, and anything in between to compete at the bowl series events. Team scores are based on your team name, but anyone can be squadded to shoot together, no matter their affiliation.
Individuals are welcome to compete at Nationals, but must be affiliated with their institution and may not compete as “Independent.”
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.
Competition
The tentative schedule is listed in the Match Program, which can be found on the various event pages. The schedule is also posted, along with other information, under each individual event. Please note that all schedules posted online are tentative and subject to change. Teams are ultimately responsible for their own squadding for each event through the SHOT system. Final schedules will be emailed to participants the week of the event.
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 and the name and email address of the person to whom you’d like to transfer your registration.
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.
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. Ammunition up to 1 oz. is allowed at all international conference events. For American events, follow the appropriate rules listed by the National Governing Bodies (ATA, NSSA, & NSCA) for allowable loads.
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 ranges. Please contact the individual ranges directly.
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. Please refer to the Match Program or the events page for the course of fire for each event.
Absolutely not! 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 has up to ten minutes to remedy the situation and continue competition. If further time or investigation is needed, 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.
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 ACUI firearm safety 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 or other areas of the building 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 200 to 1,000 athletes at the national championship and for years has hosted sectional-like competitions across the country.