CHATEAUROUX, France —Tarleton State University senior manufacturing and industrial management major Conner Prince took home silver for the USA in Olympic men’s skeet shooting today at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre.

He becomes the first competitor in school history to earn a medal in an Olympic event, according to university archives.

Ahead of the final, Prince registered a 124 to equal the qualifying Olympic record, joining Italy’s Tammaro Cassandro and Chinese Taipei’s Meng Yuan Lee atop the leaderboard.

Also joining Prince in the finals was his teammate and coach, Vincent Hancock, who won gold in 2008, 2012 and 2020. Other finalists included Sweden’s Stefan Nilsson and Peru’s Nicolas Espinosa Pacheco.

In the finals, the Tarleton Texan hit 42 of his first 43 targets. He would go on to connect on 48 of 50 overall, tying Hancock for first and forcing additional shots to determine a winner. The final tally would be 58 for Hancock and 57 for Prince. Lee took home bronze.

Prior to the Olympics, Prince expressed that it hadn’t fully hit him yet what was about to transpire.

“It’s a dream come true,” he said at the time. “But to be honest, it hasn’t really set in that I’m going to the Olympics.”

Now the Burleson native can say that not only did he make the USA team, but he earned a medal while representing his country.

A founding member of The Texas A&M System, Tarleton State University is breaking records — in enrollment, research, scholarship, athletics, philanthropy and engagement — while transforming the lives of approximately 18,000 students in Stephenville, Fort Worth, Waco, Bryan and online. For 125 years, Tarleton State has been committed to accessible higher education opportunities for all while helping students grow academically, socially and professionally through programs that emphasize real world learning and address regional, state and national needs.