LINCOLN, NEBRASKA - Christie Morton and Jason Chau of Lincoln won the overall female and male divisions, respectively, at the National Archery in the Schools Program state tournament March 28 at the Lancaster Event Center.
Morton, of Northeast High School, led females with a score of 278, while Chau, of Pound Middle School, led the males with a 272.
The top high school senior archers, each earning a $500 scholarship, were Morton and Kai Friis-Hansen of Oakland-Craig High School (271).
The tournament was the culminating event in the state for NASP, which is a physical education curriculum that has spread across the nation.
"When you walk into a NASP tournament and look at the participants, you will be amazed by the diversity of the archers taking part - from the skinny fourth grader to the big high school senior," said Aaron Hershberger, a Nebraska Game and Parks Commission outdoor education specialist and state NASP coordinator. "You don't have to be super tall or extremely muscular to be good at archery. It's the reason NASP is so popular; everyone can do it."
The tournament was conducted by the Commission, Nebraska State Archery Association, Lincoln Prairie Bowmen Archery Club, Golden Arrow Archery Club of Omaha, Saunders Archery, and volunteers.
"With more than 300 archers, this event has become the largest youth indoor archery event in the state," Hershberger said.
The top five individuals in each division qualified for the NASP national tournament, to be held May 8-9 in Louisville, Ky. The following teams qualified by winning their division or meeting a minimum score: High School - Lincoln North Star, Superior Public Schools, Lincoln Northeast, South Platte Public Schools, Omaha Mater Dei Academy; Middle School - Lincoln Dawes Middle School, Lincoln Pound Middle School; Elementary School - Lincoln Pound Middle School (sixth grade).
The results:
Top High School Senior: Female - Christie Morton, Lincoln Northeast, 278 points; Male - Kai Friis-Hansen, Oakland-Craig, 271
Top Score - All Divisions: Female - Christie Morton, Lincoln Northeast, 278: Male - Jason Chau, Pound Middle School (Lincoln), 272
Top High School Female: 1. Christie Morton, Lincoln Northeast, 278; 2. Sam Griffin, Lincoln North Star, 270; 3. Joselyn Vosta, Lincoln North Star, 263; 4. Victoria Hinrichs, Lincoln Northeast, 259; 5. Jessica Nguyen, Lincoln North Star, 257
Top High School Male: 1. Kai Friis-Hansen, Oakland-Craig, 271; 2. Askar Akayev, Oakland-Craig, 269; 3. Craig Guilkey, Superior Public Schools, 265; 4. Cody Butler, Superior Public Schools, 262; 5. Zach Wright, Lincoln North Star, 256
Middle School Female: 1. McKenzie Hyde, Dawes (Lincoln), 267; 2. Gina Kassebaum, Dawes (Lincoln), 258; 3. Alisha Sheets, Dawes (Lincoln), 258; 4. Annie Keeshan, Dawes (Lincoln), 253; 5. Destiny McClure, Superior Public Schools, 253
Middle School Male: 1. Jason Chau, Pound (Lincoln), 272; 2. Ryan Hedges, Dawes (Lincoln), 265; 3. Aaron Balderson, Dundy County Schools, 261; 4. J.D. Hourigan, Superior Public Schools, 261; 5. Eric DeJonge, Pound (Lincoln), 258
Elementary School Female: 1. Harley Schuster, Superior Public Schools, 219; 2. Colby Duvel, Dundy County Schools, 217; 3. Fayelee Sanford, Dundy County Schools, 213; 4. Kylee Yakel, Pound Middle School (Lincoln), 212; 5. Catera Nondorf, Superior Public Schools, 202
Elementary School Male: 1. Marcus Fox, Dundy County Schools, 258; 2. Ashten Williams, Mickle Middle School (Lincoln), 241; 3. Jared Crouse, Dundy County Schools, 239; 4. Austin Chabb, Dawes Middle School (Lincoln), 238; 5. Collin Sehi, North American Martyrs (Lincoln), 236
Team - High School Division: 1. Lincoln North Star, 2,948; 2. Superior Public Schools, 2,862
Team - Middle School Division: 1. Dawes Middle School (Lincoln), 2,988; 2. Pound Middle School (Lincoln), 2,818
Team - Elementary School Division: 1. Pound Middle School (Lincoln), 2,317; 2. Superior Public Schools, 2,301
Saunders Archery SACO School Shoot-Out: 1. Pound Middle School (Lincoln); 2. Superior Public Schools
Rainwater Basin Designated as Landscape of Hemispheric Importance
LINCOLN, Neb. - Nebraska's Rainwater Basin has been designated as the first Landscape of Hemispheric Importance by the Executive Office of the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network (WHSRN).
The Rainwater Basin received the designation because of its vital role to the survival of shorebirds.
The Rainwater Basin comprises 6,100 square miles of shallow playa wetlands south of the Platte River in south-central Nebraska. In the spring and fall, millions of migratory birds pass through the region to feed and rest.
Some of the shorebirds that visit the Rainwater Basin migrate each year between the southern tip of South America and the northernmost parts of Canada and Alaska. Because these birds spend much of their lives in transit, each stopover is a much-needed chance for them to rest and fatten up in order to survive the journey.
One species, the Buff-breasted Sandpiper, is especially dependent on the eastern Rainwater Basin, with virtually all of the world's "buffies," estimated at 20,000 to 30,000, stopping over to feed in the region's agricultural fields each spring. The species winters in the pampas and cattle-grazing areas of Argentina, southern Brazil and Uruguay.
Conservation of the Rainwater Basin is spearheaded by the Rainwater Basin Joint Venture, a public-private partnership composed of conservation agencies, local government entities, nonprofit organizations, and individuals. The Rainwater Basin was nominated for designation by Joel Jorgensen, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission nongame bird program manager, and Steve Moran, recently retired coordinator of the Rainwater Basin Joint Venture.
"This is a very big deal, to have an organization with a hemispheric perspective focus its attention on the Rainwater Basin," Jorgensen said. "That speaks volumes about how critical this region is for shorebirds and other wildlife."
The Joint Venture provides partnership structure for agencies, nongovernmental organizations, landowners, and farmers to address natural resource issues through projects that also improve migratory bird habitat. The Commission is a partner of the Joint Venture and manages more than 5,500 acres of wetland habitat in the region.
The WHSRN, based in Manomet, Mass., is the oldest hemispheric-scale voluntary conservation collaborative in the world. Its mission is the conservation of shorebird species and their habitats through a network of key sites in the Americas. WHSRN comprises 73 sites and one landscape in 12 countries nations, some 25 million acres.
