Members of the Army Reserve Marksmanship Program competed at the 56th Annual Interservice Pistol Championships hosted by the Army Marksmanship Unit at Fort Benning, Georgia June 7-12 2015. The team was led by Lt. Col. David Schultz and Command Sgt. Maj. Steven Slee with firing members Maj. Luis Garcia, Maj. Patrick Sleem, Capt. Thomas Bourne, 1st Lt. Davy Simanjaya, Master Sgt. Robert Mango, Sgt. 1st Class Kristopher Beerman, Sgt. 1st Class John Buol, Staff Sgt. Jonathan Rosene, Staff Sgt. Richard Willis, and Sgt. Zachariah Smith.

USAR Blue made up of of firing members Sleem, Bourne, Mango, Beerman, Buol, and Rosene managed consistent top five finishes in every team match including a third overall in Service Pistol. Top individual shooters were Mango – with top five finishes in the .22 Overall Aggregate, Service Pistol Overall Aggregate, and Grand Overall Aggregate – and Rosene who took second in the .22 Overall Aggregate.

“Competition is important to developing marksmanship,” said team officer-in-charge Schultz. “I personally find it so beneficial to weapons skill that I don’t usually like discussing serious marksmanship training with those that don’t compete because they haven’t tapped into their full potential.” Team coach and perennial shooting champion Mango said, “Precision events such as bulls eye [NRA Outdoor Pistol] teach a much higher degree of skill. You have to learn to ‘grind it out’ to get better.”

Army Reservist Soldiers competing in the 56th Annual Interservice Pistol Championships. Front row: Staff Sgt. Jonathan Rosene, Capt. Thomas Bourne, Maj. Patrick Sleem, Sgt. 1st Class John Buol. Back row: Staff Sgt. Richard Willis, Maj. Luis Garcia, Lt. Col. David Schultz, Command. Sgt. Maj. Steven Slee, Master Sgt. Robert Mango, Sgt. 1st Class Kristopher Beerman, 1st Lt. Davy Simanjaya, Sgt. Zachariah Smith.