By Paula J. Randall Pagán
U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit Public Affairs Office
FORT BENNING, Ga. - Soldiers of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit
received 16 individual medals and three team Gold Medals in the USA Shooting
National Championships. The USAMU is hosted the USA Shooting National
Championships for Rifle, Pistol and Running Target, in which more than 200
shooters are competing; USA Shooting is the national governing body for the
Olympic shooting sports in the United States.
Five-time Olympian John McNally won the Rapid Fire Pistol
Championship June 29. Carl Trompeter took the Silver Medal and Eric
Weeldreyer got the Bronze Medal.
In the Men's Three Position Rifle Competition June 28, Staff Sgt.
Jason A. Parker won the Gold Medal, Maj. Michael E. Anti received the Silver
Medal and Eric Uptagrafft got the Silver Medal. The USAMU Team of Parker,
Anti and Spc. Trevor D. Gathman won the Team Gold Medal and USAMU Deputy
Commander Robert W. Aylward won the Senior Division Award.
June 26, Anti beat 63 other competitors and won the Men's Prone
Rifle National Championship. Anti got the Gold Medal for his score of
1,295.1 points out of a possible 1,309, barely edging out Joe Hein who got
the Silver Medal with a score of 1,295. Eric Uptagrafft received the Bronze
Medal. The USAMU Team of Anti, Gathman and Sgt. 1st Class Thomas A. Tamas
won the Team Gold Medal.
In the Center Fire and Standard Pistol Matches, Weeldreyer won the
Gold Medals, John Zurek received the Silver Medals and Trompeter got the
Bronzes.
USAMU's Staff Sgt. Armando R. Ayala got his fourth medal of the
competition June 24. Ayala won the Gold Medal and the 50-Meter Running
Target Mixed National Championship and Sgt. 1st Class Lance D. Dement of
USAMU received the Silver Medal. Bill Johnson got the Bronze Medal.
June 23, Ayala received the Silver Medal in the 50-Meter 30+30
Running Target Championship with a score of 572 plus 93 in the shoot off;
Ayala still holds the National Championship Record of 579 points out of a
possible 600. Johnson won the Championship with a 572 plus 94 in the shoot
off and Dement got the Bronze Medal with a score of 570. In the June 21
10-Meter Men's Running Target Mixed match, Fredrickson won the National
Championship, Ayala got the Silver Medal and Johnson took the Bronze.
Ayala won the National Championship in the Men's 10-Meter 30+30
Running Target event June 20. Ayala got the Gold Medal with a score of
1,248.6 points out of a possible 1,309 points. Mike Fredrickson received
the Silver Medal with a score of 1,220.6 and Johnson got the Bronze with
1,217.6 points. Cathy Winstead won the Women's 10-Meter 20+20 Running
Target match with a score of 688 points out of a possible 800. Trisha Fife
was second with 646 and Leigh Haase finished third with 639.
In the Women's Air Rifle Match, June 24, Erin Skeuse won the Gold
Medal with a score of 890.9 out of 909 and USAMU's Spc. Hatti J. Johnson got
the Silver Medal with a 889. Elizabeth Tidmore received the Bronze for her
score of 884.3. The USAMU Team of Johnson and Spcs. Karyn E. Manges and
Mary K. Elsass won the Team Gold Medal.
Air Rifle World Champion and world record holder Parker of USAMU won
the Gold Medal in the Air Rifle National Championship June 23 with a score
of 1,293.7 points out of a possible 1,309 points; Parker also holds the
National Championship Record of 1,295.2 points. Ryan Tanoue took the Silver
Medal with a score of 1,289.1 and Matt Rawlings got the Bronze Medal with
1,286.4.
Sgt. 1st Class Daryl L. Szarenski won the Free Pistol Championship
June 23. Szarenski received the Gold Medal with his score of 1,205.5 points
out of a possible 1,309 points, beating Zurek whose score was 1,200.5 for
the Silver Medal. USAMU's Staff Sgt. Adam J. Holloway, with a score of
1,182.8, was awarded the Bronze Medal. Sandra Uptagrafft won the Gold Medal
in the Women's Sport Pistol Match June 23, followed by Janine Bowman with
the Silver Medal and Melissa McConnell with the Bronze.
In the Women's Sport Rifle matches June 21, Amber Darland took the
Gold Medal in the Three-Position Championships with a score of 1,260.9 out
of a possible 1,309 points. Melissa Mulloy got the Silver Medal with a
score of 1,245.3 and USAMU's Johnson received the Bronze Medal with a
1,244.3. Darland also won the Prone Championship, followed by Celeste Green
in second place and Mulloy in third.
Zurek won the Gold Medal in the Men's Air Pistol Match June 20 with
a score of 1,249.9 points out of a possible 1,309 points. Szarenski
received the Silver Medal with a score of 1,242.7; Szarenski is still the
current USAS National Championship record holder in Air Pistol with a score
of 1,263.6, which he set in 2001. Spc. John C. Ennis of USAMU took the
Bronze Medal with 1,231.8 points. In the Women's Air Pistol Match, Jodie
Briggs, McConnell and Janine Bowman won the Gold, Silver and Bronze medals
with scores of 834, 832.1 and 830.1 out of a possible 909 points
respectively.
(Formed in 1956 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to raise the standards of
marksmanship throughout the U.S. Army, the Army Marksmanship Unit is
assigned to the Accessions Support Brigade, U.S. Army Accessions Command, of
Fort Monroe, Va. The Marksmanship Unit trains its soldiers to win
competitions and enhances combat readiness through train-the-trainer
clinics, research and development. The world-class soldier-athletes of the
USAMU also promote the Army and assist recruiters in attracting young
Americans to enlist in the Army. For more information on the U.S. Army
Marksmanship Unit, contact the Public Affairs Office at (706) 545-5436,
paula.pagan@usarec.army.mil or http://www.usarec.army.
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