CAMP PERRY, Ohio (July 28, 2015) -- The Army's Service Pistol Team won the National Trophy Pistol Team Match during the 2015 Civilian Marksmanship Program National Trophy Pistol Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio, July 12.
The winning U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, or USAMU, team of Sgt. 1st Class Adam Sokolowski, Sgt 1st Class Patrick Franks, Staff Sgt. Lawrence Cleveland, Sgt. 1st Class Michael Gasser, and Sgt. Ryan Franks also won several individual matches including the prestigious President's 100 Trophy.
"I'm pretty pleased with the overall results," said Sokolowski, a Yeagertown, Pennsylvania-native and USAMU Service Pistol Team coach. "We are very proficient with the service pistol, and we have a lot of depth on that. I was confident going into [the match], we would dominate. We didn't expect to win everything because there are a lot of great shooters here, but I'm pleased with how it turned out."
The Army Pistol Team won the National Trophy Pistol Team Match with a total score of 1150-43X, defending the title of "Best in the Nation." The "X" in the score denotes hitting an X-ring inside the bull's-eye of a target. The X scores are used to break ties.
During the competition, Sgt. 1st Class Patrick Franks, of Henderson, Nevada, broke three national match records, bringing home the Military Police Corps Trophy, the General Mellon Trophy and the General Patton Trophy. His combined score of 588-28X set a third national record for the match.
"I had a couple of issues early on, but I coached myself on the line and ended up coming out pretty strong," said Sgt. 1st Class Franks, who is also one of the instructors at the Small Arms Firing School, held each year during the national matches. "In the end, I was super focused. We had the team match, and I really wanted a good score."
Another Army Pistol Team member, Cleveland, won the National Trophy individual match, bringing home the General Custer Trophy with a score of 294-7X.
"I can't complain about today's performance," said Cleveland, a native of Tacoma Washington. "Basically, what I have been doing all season is … setting goals. I am no longer trying to compete with anyone. I just set goals [for the matches] and try to meet them. This year I ended up meeting my goals and surpassing them."
Although one of the less experienced Army Pistol Team members, Sgt. Ryan Franks, won the prestigious President's Pistol Match, earning the top spot on the President's 100 competition. He also brought home the President's Trophy with a total score of 392-15X.
"This year the thought of winning the President's 100 match was so far from my mind because it was inconceivable; there are so many other great shooters out there that I didn't believe it was possible for me to win," said Franks of Henderson, Nevada.
He said he shot well during the President's Pistol Match because he did not just focus on winning.
"I believe it aided me because I just got up there and did everything the team has tried to instill in me," said Franks, who shoots on the team with his brother, Sgt. 1st Class Franks.
The President's Hundred Tab is awarded to competitors for exceptional shooting with either the service pistol or rifle during the President's 100 Match. Each year, 100 tabs are awarded to the top shooters.
Editor's note: The USAMU's mission is winning national and international shooting competitions and advancing small-arms lethality to demonstrate the Army's marksmanship capability and enhance marksmanship effectiveness in combat. The USAMU is part of the U.S. Army Accessions Support Brigade and the Army Marketing and Research Group.
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