Yreka's Peyton Zanotto fights anxiety to help school earn 2nd at trap shooting championship

Yreka junior Peyton Zanotto didn't want to try sports at first.

She would get nervous and often panicked when placed in uncomfortable scenarios like performing in front of loud crowds of people. But she was coaxed into joining the team during her freshman year by her grandfather Doug Duckart, who became one of the coaches.

Now Zanotto heads into her senior year as one of the top female trapshooters in California.

Zanotto connected 87 of 100 shots and won the female division at the California State Clay Trap Shooting Championships in Kingsburg earlier this month.

Her team finished second overall in the state behind Foothill High School of Palo Cedro in Shasta County.

The school competed against 15 different teams and 168 trap shooters from across California. The contest was conducted in two intervals of 50 shots. After the first 50 shots, the trap shooters would take a break before attempting a second interval.

"I had never picked up a shot gun before," Zanotto said. "Now I know I can do it and now I'm better than most of the kids on my team.

"I wasn't like some of the kids on my team who had been hunting since they were little. Now I know that I can do it."

Zanotto said that she would cry before some of the meets she entered. She explained how she'd get so nervous that she wouldn't want to compete but then would find the courage to step up on the range line.

"My goals are to overcome my anxiety and not to be nervous," Zanotto said. "I know what I'm doing and I have to be confident."

More:Foothill shows why it has the fastest trap shooters in California

Zanotto's goal next year is shoot 50 of 50 during a competition and place top five overall in the state.

Other notable performances from Siskiyou County trap shooters included Bella Verry, Mike Cizin, Ty Libby of Yreka and Colby Bridwell of Etna. Bridwell placed third at state. Cizin finished eighth, and Libby finished in 13th place. Verry finished third place in the novice division. 

Ethan Hanson started working for the Redding Record Searchlight after four years with the Los Angeles Daily News as a freelancer. His coverage includes working the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament in South Bend, Indiana, and writing about the St. Louis Rams' move to Los Angeles with the Ventura County Star. He began his career as a play-by-play broadcaster for LA Pierce College from 2011-2017. Follow him on Twitter at @EthanAHanson_RS.