CHEYENNE – The first annual Wyoming Archery in the Schools Program (WASP) state championship was recently completed with more than 80 youth from throughout the state participating in the tournament.
Hosted by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, the tournament was held in a virtual format in which students compete at their own school with the scores then submitted to the Game and Fish.
According to hunter and angler recruitment coordinator Tristanna Bickford, the championship was the culminating event for the more than 30 schools participating in WASP for the 2008-09 school year.  Bickford said the tournament is designed for 4-12 grade students.

“Each participant uses the same kind of bows, arrows and targets,” said Bickford.  The Game and Fish assists with providing the equipment, and provides instruction to teachers to implement the program.”

Archery in the schools has been in Wyoming schools since 2003, but this is the first year schools have participated in a state tournament to qualify students for national competition.

The winners of the 2009 Wyoming State Tournament for the following categories are:
Elementary Team Division: (Name, Location and Score)
1. Etna Elementary, Etna – 2354
2. Goins Elementary, Cheyenne (team 1) – 1923
3. Goins Elementary, Cheyenne (team 2) -  of 1116

Elementary Female Division – Grades 4-6
1. Isabella Currie -Etna – 215
2. Trisha Richards -Etna – 187
3. JoJo Schultz – Etna – 174
4. Carissa Zamora – Cheyenne – 160
5. Janeta McDowell – Cheyenne – 156

Middle School Female Division – Grades 7-8
1. McKenna Brinton – Jackson – 176
2. Melissa Fox, Jackson – 166
3. Tara Ryan, Jackson – 110

Elementary Male Division – Grades 4-6
1. Dillan Ortman – Etna – 198
2. Andrew Eagle Road – Cheyenne – 191
3. Gavin Speakman – Etna – 185
4. Jaden Clark – Etna – 183
5. Alexander Anderson – Cheyenne – 180

High School Male Division – Grades 9-12
1. Will Wise – Jackson – 211
2. Trevor Ryan – Jackson – 159

These individuals as well as the first place team have qualified to compete at the National Archery in Schools Program (NASP) championships held May 8 – 9 in Louisville, KY.

WASP was adopted in 2003 from the national archery program. The program’s focus is designed to teach international archery style target archery in grades 4-12 as part of the in-school curriculum. NASP’s core
content covers archery history, safety, technique, equipment, mental concentration and self-improvement. The students shoot at bulls-eye targets placed in front of an arrow resistant net in their gymnasium or outside. Before presenting archery instruction to their students at school, teachers must undergo an 8-hour certification-training program for basic archery instruction. Certification is conducted by Game and Fish education staff and certified volunteers.

Complete information on tournament results and how schools can become
involved in WASP is on the WASP Web site at http://gf.state.wy.us/services/education/educatorshomepage/NASP/index.asp.