Siouxland student Alise Brockhaus is a world-class archer

LAWTON, IOWA — Very few people can say they're one of the absolute best in their nation at something. But when it comes to archery, 18-year-old Alise Brockhaus can make the claim with total legitimacy. 

Not that the recent Lawton-Bronson graduate is in the habit of talking herself up a whole lot. Not when her skills can speak for her.

"You’d never see it because she is super modest, super quiet, doesn’t show emotion, but she is a competitor inside. There’s a fire burning deep inside. When she gets up there, she wants to win every time," Lawton-Bronson Archery Coach Jason Carlson said. 

At the end of April, in Utah, Brockhaus won the National Archery in the Schools Program's Western National 3-D shooting tournament (where contestants often take aim at foam animals) and finished seventh in a separate bullseye shooting tournament held at the same time. Even though it was her fourth time at nationals, Brockhaus admits she was a little bit nervous. 

Gabby Hamann, a 14-year-old student at Siouxland Christian School who competed against Brockhaus at nationals, said Brockhaus' alleged nervousness didn't show at all.

"She’s very good at keeping her composure. When we had started that day, she wasn’t doing real great but she was just like: 'I’m going to put that behind me and forget about those.'"

The natural

Before a seventh grade P.E. class with Carlson, Brockhaus had limited experience with the bow-and-arrow sport. She and her dad shot hunting bows a few times but that's about it.

After she tried archery in class, it wasn't long before Brockhaus was competing. And she realized pretty quickly she could excel at the sport.

"I think it was really the first tournament. Usually beginners are shooting in the 200 or 210 range and the very first tournament I was shooting 250s and coach and the upperclassmen were like 'You should stay with this, you’re a natural.'" (300 is the highest score a person can attain.)

Within a year, Brockhaus finished as the runner-up at a state tournament. 

"She’s always kind of had it," Carlson said. "Once in a while, you find those kids who stand out."

Carlson, who has also coached football, wrestling and golf, and helped out with track, said he started the archery program at Lawton-Bronson in 2016 after attending Iowa Department of Natural Resources classes for certifying teachers as basic archery instructors.

"Once I got my certification, we were allowed to start organizing and assembling a team and we got quite a few on board right away," Carlson said. 

According to Carlson, who grew up hunting and shooting a bow in the Loess Hills, one motivation for starting the Lawton-Bronson program is the way it allows for a different kind of student athlete to find success. 

"Archery is one of those where I could take a kid who would probably never be successful on a basketball court or football field and they would be very successful and have a great career. It caters to anyone willing to put in the time," Carlson said.

Brockhaus' response to whether she's ever had significant interest in competing in other sports supports Carlson's idea. "Nope," she flatly said.

Since starting the program, Carlson said Lawton-Bronson's won two state championships as a team and had individual state champions including Brockhaus this year in March. There, she had high scores of 295 in both bullseye and 3D shooting which is almost as close to perfect as possible. 

The school's seen two national champions as well: Brockhaus this year and Breann Holtz, who still helps out with practices, in 2018. Another Lawton-Bronson archer, Adam Larson, finished as high as third in nationals (with a score of 297) and won five state championships.

Brockhaus' state dominance this year was a breakthrough for her as she previously finished second on three different occasions. 

"Those experiences she had, she used to keep calm. And it really showed her senior year," Carlson said. 

Drowning it out

Even though he has gotten to witness his archers reach the absolute heights of success in the sport, Carlson admitted he's still able to enjoy the simplest things when watching them compete.

"These kids are shooting bare fingers and sighting off an arrow which is the rawest form of shooting," he said. 

When Brockhaus practices her shooting, typically at school, she'll often listen specific music or just find a random station to have on while she works. "It drowns out the rest of the noise for me," she said.

To hear Brockhaus tell it, there isn't much of a "routine" beyond that. She'll just go in and shoot targets for however long she sees fit.  "On the good days, I’m flinging arrows. On the bad days, I try to find my aim point again," she said. 

In the run-up to her appearance at a world open in Louisville in late June (where she finished as high as fifth in her own grade), Brockhaus was practicing for at least 30 minutes every day. 

"She’s very good at routine," Hamann said. "Some kids, when you’re first starting, you’ll just go at it. They’re not really going through the steps. She has a good routine and goes through all the steps."

Whether at practice or in a tournament, Brockhaus will have her Genesis Compound Bow with her (she actually has two bows she won from state). 

"There’s no sights on it," she said. "So you just have to use the tip of your arrow to find your aim point."