Wayne Boy Wins Back-To-Back State Championships In Free Throw Competition

WAYNE, NJ — It took another perfect performance for 9-year-old Dylan Bogdanski to be crowned the best free throw shooter in New Jersey again — and the Wayne Township boy was up to the challenge.

Kids from all around the Garden State participate in the Elks Hoop Shoot, a national competition that brings young athletes to the free throw line to test their skills. Each player takes 25 shots.

Dylan won the New Jersey contest last year with a perfect score and went all the way to the national championship — he has his sights set on returning, and performing even better this year.

This year, after winning at the local and district levels (representing Elks Lodge #2237 out of Cedar Grove), he stepped up to defend his title at state competition on Feb. 7, against other 8- and 9-year-olds.

The pressure was on inside the South Plainfield High School gym for Dylan to make that 25th foul shot, because the competitor behind him had just sunk the 24th.

"It was close," he said.

Standing at the line, Dylan said he was a bit nervous — but kept his focus on what he knew he needed to do, and the shooting rhythm that had gotten him this far.

"I just looked at the rim and shot it," he explained.

Simple as that.

Dylan, a fourth-grader at Theunis Dey, is currently playing basketball daily with the Wayne Police Athletic League travel team. He also plays baseball and flag football, but basketball is where he shines.

His PAL teammates have been rooting him on, and Dylan said he's thankful for their support. He's got backers at the Cedar Grove Elks lodge, and of course from his family — Dad Gary, mom Caroline, and sister Juliette — as takes another shot at that national championship.

The Hoop Shoot is a free throw competition for boys and girls ages 8 through 13, which has been “unleashing gritty kids” for more than 50 years. This year's finals are in Chicago again, and Dylan said last year's experience had both highs and lows.

"I got my own trading card, and there were lots of other fun things," such as going to a Chicago Cubs game, he said.

But the trip had a bit of bitterness too: Dylan finished sixth of 12 competitors, making 19 of his 25 shots. It wasn't the performance he was hoping for, though that 76 percent average is not far from the average NBA player's free-throw percentage of 78.4.

Still, there is a final summit to climb. No one from New Jersey has won the national Hoop Shoot in more than 20 years, and Dylan still hopes to be the first. He's playing basketball daily right now, and said he will focus on practicing his free throws a week before regional competition.

That's coming up in Wilkes-Barre on March 15, where he will compete against the New York and Pennsylvania winners as part of Northeast Central Region 5.

"I'm feeling good," he said. "I think I'm going to win it."

If he wins again there, the next stop is the national championship in April.