By Brittany Nelson, USAS Public Relations & Communications Manager
HILLSDALE, MI (June 24, 2025) – After a pair of exciting finals, Ava Downs and Cylas Prince claimed championship titles at the 2025 USA Shooting Trap Junior Olympic Championships, on June 22 in Hillsdale, Michigan.
Over 100 junior athletes from across the country came to shoot at the annual competition, hosted by Hillsdale College at the John A. Halter Shooting Sports Center. After 125 targets, the top six female and male competitors qualified for the finals where the championship titles were on the line.
Downs, of Muskego, Wisconsin, qualified for the Women’s Trap final after shooting the top qualification score of 113. The 2025 Junior CAT Games medalist ultimately earned gold after outshooting Olivia Krauss, who claimed silver, and Joy Chen, who took bronze.
Downs is a member of the USA Shooting National Trap Team and competes for the Hillsdale College Shotgun Team. Her Junior Olympic championship title adds to an already impressive shooting resume. Earlier this month, she qualified for the 2025 Junior Pan American Games Trap Team at the USA Shooting National Championships and will represent Team USA this August in Asunción, Paraguay. She also earned the 2025 Junior National Champion title in Women’s Trap and took silver in the open women’s category.
Prince, of Sweetwater, Tennessee, earned his spot in the men’s final with a qualification score of 115. Prince claimed his first Junior Olympic Champion title, finishing ahead of Owen Bins, who earned silver, and Ethan Hemsath, who took bronze.
Prince is a member of the Monroe County Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) team and trains out of the Crossville Shooting Sports Park in Crossville, Tennessee. At just 16 years old, the Junior Olympic champion already has an impressive list of accomplishments in his shooting career. Earlier this month Prince earned gold in Men’s U18 Trap at the 2025 USA Shooting National Championships. He currently holds the national record for Men’s U15 International Trap with an aggregate score of 218 out of 250. Prince has also made the SCTP All-Scholastic Team three years in a row.
The Junior Olympic Championships also served as a selection match for the Junior Olympic (JO) Squad. The squad was selected based on the top two finishers from the finals who are not already on the USA Shooting Junior National Team. Prince earned a spot on the JO squad along with Bin, Krauss, and Chen. The JO squad will receive a custom Shoot the Moon vest, ammunition, and a free entry to the next USA Shooting selection match.
Medals were also awarded in U18 and U15 categories. See all results from the 2025 competition here. See photos from the competition here.
USA Shooting thanks Hillsdale College for hosting the competition and for their continued support of the shooting sports pipeline nationwide. AXIL generously contributed podium prizes to recognize and reward outstanding athlete performances.
USA Shooting extends a special thanks to our sponsors and partners including The NRA Foundation, Hillsdale College, The International Order of T. Roosevelt, The Hal & Jean Glassen Foundation, Safari Club International, MidwayUSA Foundation, Shoot the Moon, and Axil.
About USA Shooting
USA Shooting, a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation was chartered by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee as the National Governing Body for the Olympic & Paralympic Shooting Sports in April 1995. The organization develops and implements programs to promote growth in the sport and serves as a sanctioning body for local and national competitions. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center, USA Shooting has a full-time staff dedicated to our sport.
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