MCRD Parris Island Shooting Team leaves National Championship with new awards and experience

Photo By Staff Sgt. Dana Beesley | Marines with the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island Shooting Team, discuss their plan of attack before the Infantry Trophy Team Match at Camp Perry, Ohio August 2, 2018. The National Trophy Rifle Matches are an annual sporting festival established by congress and President Roosevelt in 1903. The event welcomes over 6,000 participants, ranging from beginning shooters to the world’s top-performing competitors. Shooters wear custom-made shooting jackets that conform to their body type. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Dana Beesley/Released)  

PORT CLINTON, OH, UNITED STATES

08.13.2018

Story by Sgt. Dana Beesley   

Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island           

The Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island Shooting Team wrapped up shooting in the National Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio, Aug. 5. The competition, which began July 23, welcomed over 2,500 competitors from around the world including various military competitive shooting teams. Team member Cpl. Trevor Keith said the team performed well in the competition, improving drastically from last year. He said this was the first year most of the team had shot an M1 Garand or competed in the Infantry Team Trophy Match.

"Our scores that we put up this year compared to last year are literally night and day," Keith said. "On top of that, we are a young team and most of the Marines here have never competed before."

The team took home various awards from the two weeks of competition. Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jordan Kramp and Cpl. Timothy Joy medaled in the President's 100 Pistol Match, an event that only the top 100 shooters out of nearly 1,000 place in. Kramp took home a silver medal and Joy received a bronze.

The doubles team of Joy and Sgt. Quintin Bentley placed 175th out of 293 teams in the Hearst Doubles Match on July 31. Individually, Bentley also received the bronze Daniel Boone rifle medal in the National Trophy Individual category. Sgt. Cody Cheney also took home the bronze medal in the same event.

Team Noncommissioned Officer-in-Charge Sgt. Thomas Colyard said the team is in great shape for the future thanks to the competition.

"We are bringing back everything we've learned this season to influence Weapons and Field Training Battalion at Parris Island and the future Marines that we teach," Colyard said. "Now I know how to spot faults in my recruits' positions and teach them to overcome them."

Keith added that the biggest takeaway for him from this year's competition is the overall experience he gained from being around seasoned shooters.

"We know what works and we know what doesn't," Keith said. "There's no substitute for experience."

• Date Taken: 08.13.2018
• Date Posted: 08.13.2018 18:00
• Story ID: 288595
• Location: PORT CLINTON, OH, US