Kansas City Crushers Club History
Starting from zero
Kansas City Crushers started in 2011 after our original head coach, Scott Moniot, moved to the Kansas City area from Iowa. Scott’s son Clay had been a member of a Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) team in Iowa and was looking for a team to join.
The family checked with Powder Creek Shooting Park to determine whether they had a youth clay target team, but the facility only had a trap team at the time. So the Moniots took matters into their own hands and started a team.
Taking off like a shot
Scott worked with SCTP and Powder Creek to become a certified coach and served as the club’s only coach for its first year. With sponsorship help from CZ-USA and TriStar Arms and the support of many parent volunteers, Kansas City Crushers took off … well … like a shot. The group worked hard to raise funds, including over $9000 in prize money won by members during various events.
Within three years, club membership grew to approximately 90, with members ranging from third graders to high school students. Other parents, including Bob Patterson, Doak Stitt, Chris Hodgdon, Joan Harding and Dennis Horner became involved, with several becoming certified coaches.
Scott eventually passed the head coaching torch to Jon Francis whose son Kyle was part of the team. Jon was assisted by Bob Patterson, whose son Nate was also a Kansas City Crushers team member. Bob then took over as head coach, staying with the club even after Nate graduated high school. From there, Mark Freeman, whose son Mark Jr. and daughter Maddie were team members, took over as head coach through the 2021 season. BJ Powell served as the head coach for the 2022 and 2023 seasons while sharing duties with Mark and Dave Berck. BJ's son Ryan, and Dave's daughters Emersyn and Ashlyn are current members of the team.
Eric Duld, whose son John is a current team member and his wife Jenny a board member, assumed BJ's role for the 2024 season with continued support from Dave.
Continued growth
Many of our alumni have gone on to participate in shooting sports in college, including teams at Midland University, Lindenwood University, Concordia University, Wichita State, Fort Hays State, Kansas State University, Alabama, William Penn University, and Jacksonville University.
Scott went on to serve as the successful head coach of the Concordia University Shooting Team until he passed in 2021.
Like the sport itself, our club continues to grow every year. We invite you to join us and be part of a sport that encourages self-confidence and creates lasting memories.