Medal of Honor citation Cleto Rodríguez
Rank and organization: U.S. Army, Company B, 148th Infantry, 37th Infantry Division
Place and date: Paco Railroad Station, Manila, Philippines, February 9, 1945
Entered service at: San Antonio, TX
Born:San Marcos, TX
Citation:
He was an automatic rifleman when his unit attacked the strongly defended Paco Railroad Station during the battle for Manila, Philippines. While making a frontal assault across an open field; his platoon was halted 100 yards from the station by intense enemy fire.
On his own initiative, he left the platoon, accompanied by a comrade, and continued forward to a house 60 yards from the objective. Although under constant enemy observation, the 2 men remained in this position for an hour; firing at targets of opportunity, killing more than 35 hostile soldiers and wounding many more.
Moving closer to the station and discovering a group of Japanese replacements attempting to reach pillboxes, they opened heavy fire, killed more than 40 and stopped all subsequent attempts to man the emplacements. Enemy fire became more intense as they advanced to within 20 yards of the station.
Then, covered by his companion, Pvt. Rodríguez boldly moved up to the building and threw 5 grenades through a doorway killing 7 Japanese, destroying a 20-mm. gun and wrecking a heavy machinegun. With their ammunition running low, the 2 men started to return to the American lines, alternately providing covering fire for each other’s withdrawal.. In 2 l/2 hours of fierce fighting the intrepid team killed more than 82 Japanese, completely disorganized their defense, and paved the way for the subsequent overwhelming defeat of the enemy at this strongpoint.
Two days later, Pvt. Rodríguez again enabled his comrades to advance, when he single-handedly killed 6 Japanese and destroyed a well-placed 20-mm. gun by his outstanding skill with his weapons, gallant determination to destroy the enemy, and heroic courage in the face of tremendous odds. Pvt. Rodriguez, on 2 occasions, materially aided the advance of our troops in Manila.
A rifle firing range at Ohio National Guard Training Site, Camp Perry, Ohio has been named in honor of Pvt Rodriguez. Camp Perry is the home of the National Rifle and Pistol Championships.
Congratulations
High Overall
Presented by SFC Daniel Horner
3rd place SPC Roland Sink, 2nd place and top overall Army Reserve Soldier receiving a certificate from Sig Sauer SFC Tor Peterson, Overall Rifle Champion US Army National Guardsman SSG Steve Ophoff
1st Place overall Team
303rd PSYOP Company
SGT Phillip HOCHEVAR
SPC Michael Mitchell
SPC Sean Murphy
SPC Roland Sink
ALBUM
Overview:
Camp Atterbury, Ind. —
The Army Reserve Marksmanship Program hosted a retention and training event at Camp Atterbury. Open to all Army Reserve Soldiers, the Army Reserve Small Arms Championship is an Army Regulation directed event consisting of a mix of precision and timed action shooting events using issue service equipment shot on paper, pop-up, and steel targets from 25 to 400 meters. The event also included a formal qualification with a 100% go rate among all attending Soldiers.
“Events like the Army Reserve Small Arms Championship provide solid training and are great for Soldier retention,” said Command Sgt. Major Larry May, 84th Training Command. “This is an opportunity that many Soldiers (including me, before I attended) don’t realize exists. I consider this to have the same value as the pending ACFT and deserving of the same amount of attention.”
The precision events provided the benefits of shooting at full distance (25 to 400 meters) from multiple positions with full feedback of each shot. The precision requirements were more stringent than those commonly found in sniper training as the silhouette targets featured a number of concentric scoring rings inside the target’s center area.
The action events combined a fitness add-in based on the pending Army Combat Fitness Test with timed shooting on reactive steel and pop-up targets in various scenarios. Shooting positions were based on the new Army qualification with an emphasis on using barricades for kneeling and standing positions to engage targets while being timed.
In addition to the training, the Army Reserve Small Arms Championship also served as a retention event. “Events like these Small Arms Championship are what the Army needs to do. In addition to training, events like this have a high retention value. Retention ultimately saves money because Soldiers decide to stay in the Army, instead of leaving,” said Lt. Col. Charles Hensley, 310th ESC (377th Theater Sustainment Command). “This event has provided good quality team building. For instance, my team has Soldiers from different units within our Major Command. Being part of a team keeps Soldiers in, especially when they can attend events like this.”
Members of the Army Reserve Marksmanship Program also provided coaching to the Soldiers. “Too few Soldiers experience true marksmanship instead of mere qualification,” said Cpt. Amnouayphonh Thammarath, 310th ESC (377th TSC). “Events like this are great for building confidence by providing full feedback to maximize training on a variety of scenarios, especially shooting at long distance. Looking at trends for the past 20 years, we need true subject matter experts capable of teaching at a higher level.”
“I’ve been passionate about shooting for 30 years and have been in the Army for 16. Members of the Competitive Marksmanship Program have instructors that help Soldiers absorb quality information easier versus the forced approach more common in the Army,” said Spc. Nakia Petersen, 390th Regiment (108th Training Command). “Soldiers are often hampered from the ineffective drill sergeant approach, which is too one way. The skilled competitive shooter-instructors in the Marksmanship Program use teaching methods more conducive to learning. They want you to learn and know the best way to teach you.”
Directed by Army regulation, the Army Reserve Small Arms Championship are held as often as Soldier interest and funding allows. In addition, all Army Reserve Soldiers are eligible to host and participate in Postal Matches during their any unit qualification as a means to get started on these retention and training events. This event featured Soldiers from the 84th, 108th, and 80th Training Commands, USACAPOC, ARCD, 83rd ARRTC/RTA, 100th TD, MIRC, First Army, and the National Guard, and the USARCMP would have liked to host more.
Army Reserve Soldiers competed at the 58th annual Interservice Rifle Championship hosted at Marine Corps Base Quantico by the USMC Weapons Training Battalion 23 June – 1 July 2019. This annual championship is a Service Rifle competition open to all members of the United States military and highlights some of the best shooters in the entire Department of Defense. Competitors engage targets from 200 to 1,000 yards and most events do not allow any sighting shots.
The Army Reserve team set new Interservice Reserve record in The Commanding General, MCCDC (Marine Corps Combat Development Command) Team Match. Captained by Sgt. 1st Class Paul Fleischer and Coached by Sgt. 1st Class John Arcularius, firing members included Sgt. 1st Class John Bonjour, Staff Sgt. Kristoffer Friend, Sgt. Joseph Hall, Sgt. Keith Stephens, Spc. Daniel Lowe, and Spc. Samuel Henderson.
While the main team competed in the 6-Man Infantry Trophy Team Match, four shooters currently assigned to the Army Reserve Careers Division competed in the 4-Man Infantry Trophy Team Match against other eligible Post or Station/unit teams. Not only did the ARCD members win the Post or Station category, but they also beat an 11-year-old Interservice record previously held by the Marine Corps. Firing members included Chief Warrant Officer Joseph Hayes and Sgts. 1st Class Daniel Dorosheff, John Hawes, and Matthew Anderson.
Sgt. Keith Stephens broke the record on the first 600-yard match that was set back in 1993 shooting an 8T Shilen Rifles 8T Ratchet barrel that he chambered and installed himself. His 600-yard score of 200-16X is numerically perfect with 16 of the 20 shots for record inside the one minute of angle (six inches at 600 yards) tie-breaking X ring, which is six times greater accuracy than that needed to hit a 300-meter target during qualification every time. In addition to serving in the 980th Engineer Battalion and the Army Reserve Marksmanship Program as an additional duty, Sgt. Stephens is a police officer in East Texas.
Army Reserve Soldiers competed among America’s best international shooters and earned several World Cup and Pan American Games slots. The USA Shooting Rifle/Pistol Spring Selection Match held at Fort Benning through March 30 tested a number of International Shooting Sport Federation competitive disciplines to determine which American shooters qualified to represent the United States at the World Cups in Beijing, China and Munich, Germany as well as the Pan American Games in Lima, Peru.
USA Shooting is the National Governing Body for ISSF competition in the United States and is chartered by the United States Olympic Committee. At the recent Selection Match, two current Army Reserve Marksmanship Program team members were selected for upcoming international competition.
Sgt. Nick Mowrer (308th MP Company) is a member of the Army World Class Athlete Program at Fort Carson in Colorado. Sgt. Mowrer took first place in Men’s Air Pistol for selection to the Pan Am games, second place in Air Pistol for World Cup selection, and third place in Three-Position Smallbore for World Cup selection.
“I’m not yet a World Cup medalist but I have made the finals in both rifle and pistol in World Cup competition and have won a medal in Prone Rifle,” said Sgt. Mowrer. “I’m also Triple Distinguished and compete in Precision Pistol and High Power competition.”
Staff Sgt. Sandra Uptagrafft (98th Training Division) is a medical logistic specialist with the 4/518th Infantry Regiment and also a member of the Army Reserve Marksmanship Program. She took first place in Women’s Sport Pistol for World Cup selection and second for Pan Am games selection. Staff Sgt. Uptagrafft also recently won Silver medals in both the 25m Sport Pistol and 10m Air Pistol events during both the December Winter Airgun and Selection matches in Colorado.
Former Army Reserve Marksmanship Program member, Sgt. 1st Class (ret.) Keith Sanderson took first place in Men’s Rapid Fire Pistol for both the Pan Am and World Cup selection.
From 1935 to 1939, an All-Around Championship was held to determine the best Smallbore, High Power, and Precision Pistol marksman.
The DuPont Trophy, a bronze statue of a medieval archer poised with his longbow at full draw, was bestowed on the winner of the All-Around Championship. This aggregate match comprised a centerfire pistol National Match Course; preliminary Smallbore Dewar Match Course; and four High Power matches that included slow fire; standing and prone, and rapid fire; sitting and prone, at ranges form 200 to 1000 yards for an aggregate of 1100 points. In 1935 and 1936, a service pistol aggregate was also fired, along with a 200-yard Smallbore rifle prone slow fire match and a 50-yard and 100-yard, 40-shot Smallbore prone match instead of the preliminary Dewar for an aggregate of 19000 points.
Winners of the All-Around Championship
1939: 1st Lt. Walter R. Walsh, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve (1058/1100)
1938: Petty Officer 1st Class Melvon O. Wilson, U.S. Coast Guard (1054/2200)
1937: 2nd Lt. William Hancock, Infantry, U.S. Army (1051/1100)
1936: Capt. Sidney R. Hinds, Infantry, U.S. Army (1797/1900)
1935: Deputy Henry J. Adams, Jr., San Diego County, California, Sheriff’s Department (1848/1900)
Competitors firing in the All-Around Championship not only had to hustle between ranges, but also needed the mental ability to adapt from one shooting discipline to another. After the demise of the All-Around Championship at Camp Perry, the DuPont Trophy was awarded to the NRA Service Rifle Champion, beginning in 1951.
Soldiers of the U.S. Army Reserve Competition Marksmanship Program competed at the Rifle National Matches held by the Civilian Marksmanship Program at Camp Perry July 24-August 8.
NTIT
The National Trophy Infantry Team Match (NTIT) is a National Trophy Rifle Match that was first fired in 1922. The NTIT is sometimes called the “rattle battle” because it emphasizes extremely fast, accurate fire. It is also an exciting competition for spectators to watch.
A team with six shooters and two coaches/team leaders begin with 384 rounds to allocate among team members. Beginning at 600 yards, shooters must distribute their fire so that, if possible, all eight targets receive at least six hits in 50 seconds. Firing continues at 500, then 300, and 200 until all ammunition is expended. E-type silhouettes are used at the longer ranges and F-type “dog” silhouettes are used at the shorter ranges. Hits at 600 yards count four points, at 500 yards, three points, at 300 yards, two points and at 200 yards, one point, plus each team receives a bonus at each yard line equal to the square of the number of targets with six or more hits.
USARCMP took first place and were the 2018 National Trophy Infantry Team Match Champions. This is the first time since 1992 that the U.S. Army Reserve has won this match.
The USARCMP also broke the Celtic Chieftain Trophy record for high Reserve Component Team which stood since 1985.
Members of the United States Army Reserve Competitive Marksmanship Program (USARCMP) competed at the NRA National Rifle Championships on 6-11 July 2018 held at Camp Atterbury, Indiana. The USARCMP competes and often wins national-level competitions as a way to build and validate shooter-instructor proficiency. Much like continuing education, such as the Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development System, skill-at-arms beyond routine qualification levels demands on-going training and competitive events are a way to develop marksmanship capabilities and demonstrate marksmanship proficiency.
Highlights
The High Reserve award was won by SPC Lowe. SPC Lowe also won the Crescent Cup Trophy, which is awarded for the high score during 200 yards standing SPC Lowe won the Crescent Cup Trophy and High Reserve award.
The Scott Trophy, awarded for high score 200 yards during sitting rapid fire, was won by SGT Morris.
USARCMP won the Enlisted Men’s National Trophy. Team Captain SGM Mauer and Team Coach SFC Arcularius led firing members SGT Morris, SFC (P) Gervasio, SPC Stephens, SPC Lowe to victory.
