MONTICELLO, Ark. — In her first season on the University of Arkansas at Monticello (UAM) Trap Shooting team, Sarah Forrest is already making her mark. On March 15, Forrest, a sophomore K-6 elementary education major at UAM, won the top prize in the female division at the “Clays for a Cause” Trap Shoot Fundraiser.
The event was hosted by Compassion’s Foundation at the Farmers Bank & Trust Trap Shooting Range at Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia, Arkansas.
The newly formed UAM Trap Shooting team is off to a winning start in its inaugural season, with members claiming top finishes in each of its first two competitions.
“UAM Trap Shooting continues to do well in competition,” said Chief John Kidwell, director of the University Police Department at UAM and team sponsor of UAM Trap Shooting. “It seems like a different trap team member shines at each new event. I am very pleased to see Sarah Forrest compete and win at this level.”
Forrest’s victory follows her second-place finish at the team’s first event of the season in February. “I’m very proud of myself for this because usually I let my nerves get to me during a trap tournament,” Forrest said. “But now I’ve learned that if you just get there and have fun, it ends up a lot better.”
Her interest in trap shooting began in sixth grade after watching her brother participate in the sport. “Something in me just drove me,” said the Warren, Arkansas, native. “And I thought, I want to learn how to do this.” She began competing with the Back Woods Trap Shooters of Bradley County and continued to compete throughout high school.
The UAM Trap Shooting team was formed in fall 2025, giving Forrest the opportunity to compete at the collegiate level. She and her teammates sharpen their skills through weekly training sessions at the AGFC Warren Shooting Sports Complex in Warren, Arkansas. For Forrest, the sport acts as a stress reliever. During training, she focuses solely on maintaining a steady rhythm, often humming a song to herself while she raises her shotgun, aims and resets.
The UAM Trap Shooting team includes 15 student members (seven women and eight men) from UAM, the UAM College of Technology-Crossett and the UAM College of Technology-McGehee, with more expected to join.
UAM Trap Shooting’s next tournament will take place on April 11 at the 13th Annual Ducks Unlimited Trap Shoot at the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation Shooting Sports Complex in Jacksonville, Arkansas. The team has also qualified to compete at the 2026 Scholastic Clay Target Program National Championship at the Cardinal Shooting Center in Marengo, Ohio, in July.
UAM Trap Shooting is made possible through UAM’s partnership with the AGFC Warren Shooting Sports Complex, which provides a quality venue for weekly practices. The team is funded, in part, by the Wildlife Restoration and Basic Hunter Education Program (CFDA# 15.611) (Grant # F25AF01373) of the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service through an agreement with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.
For more information about UAM Trap Shooting, contact Chief John Kidwell at kidwell@uamont.edu or 870-460-1183.
