Tucson teen Gloria a high-caliber performer

The Tucson teenager is a star in competitive skeet and trap shooting. He has won so many awards that he has to divide them up in his bedroom: one wall for ribbons, two walls for plaques.

He is competing at the Arizona State Junior Olympic Skeet Championships in Tucson on Saturday for a chance to participate in the national meet. He has won the past two years.

Last weekend in Phoenix, Gloria won the state trap shooting contest and scored his personal best — hitting 111 of 125 targets moving at 85 to 90 mph.

He will again compete nationally. Last year at the national trap meet, he won a silver medal and missed gold by one point.

"It gets really tough sometimes but it's all a mental game," Gloria said.

During practice several times a week, he shoots even faster targets so that otherwise high-pressure contests seem slow and relaxed.

Gloria plays other sports such as football, wrestling and baseball. But those are mostly to help him keep in shape for shooting, he said. Lifting a 10-pound firearm hundreds of times can be tiring.

In the fall, Gloria will begin high school at Mountain View and hopes to start a shooting club there to teach firearm sports and safety.

After that, he said he would like to participate on the Olympic team, win an athletic scholarship to attend college, study electrical engineering, and join the Army or Marine Corps.

He sets his goals high. After all, this teenager is used to hitting his targets.

If you go

• Event: Arizona State Junior Olympic Skeet Championships

• When: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday

• Where: Tucson Trap & Skeet Club, 7800 W. Old Ajo Highway

• Cost: Free

• What: Athletes ages 12 to 20 will compete for the state title and a chance to attend the National Junior Olympics in Colorado Springs, Colo., in July. Tucson's two-time junior lady world champion, Emily Blount, will attend for the Blount Challenge Cup.

• For more info: tucsontrapandskeet.com