Annual shooting match is chance to teach others for NY Army Guard NCO

By Staff Sgt. Michael Davis, New York Army National GuardJune 7, 2017

Annual shooting match is chance to teach others for NY Army Guard NCO
1 / 7 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Michael Kapela, with the 152nd Engineer Support Company, New York Army National Guard, waits to fire his M4 carbine during the SGT Henry Johnson Individual Combat Rifle Match as part of the 38th Annual The Adjutant General's Comb... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Annual shooting match is chance to teach others for NY Army Guard NCO
2 / 7 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Michael Kapela, with the 152nd Engineer Support Company, New York Army National Guard, fires his M4 carbine during the 38th Annual "TAG (The Adjutant General) Match" Combat Sustainment Training Exercise at Camp Smith Training Sit... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Annual shooting match is chance to teach others for NY Army Guard NCO
3 / 7 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Spc. Tyler Studd, Staff Sgt. Raphael Ramos, Staff Sgt. Michael Kapela and 1st Lt. Christopher Tornabene, Soldiers with the 152nd Engineer Support Company, New York Army National Guard, rest after the SGT Reidar Waaler Team Combat Rifle as p... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Annual shooting match is chance to teach others for NY Army Guard NCO
4 / 7 Show Caption + Hide Caption – New York Army National Guardsmen wait to hand in their targets during the 38th Annual The Adjutant General's Combat Sustainment Training Exercise (TAG Match) at Camp Smith Training Site, N.Y., June 2, 2017. The TAG Match is a 3-day event conducted by... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Annual shooting match is chance to teach others for NY Army Guard NCO
5 / 7 Show Caption + Hide Caption – An Airman shoots his M4 carbine during the SGT Henry Johnson Individual Combat Rifle Match as part of the 38th Annual "TAG (The Adjutant General) Match" Combat Sustainment Training Exercise at Camp Smith Training Site, N.Y., June 3, 2017. The TAG Mat... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Annual shooting match is chance to teach others for NY Army Guard NCO
6 / 7 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Ian Ault, with Delta Company, 2nd Battalion, 108th Infantry Regiment, New York Army National Guard, checks his target during the SGT Henry Johnson Individual Combat Rifle Match as part of the 38th Annual The Adjutant General's Co... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Annual shooting match is chance to teach others for NY Army Guard NCO
7 / 7 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Sgt. Janna Enyart, a human resources specialist with the 53rd Troop Command, New York Army National Guard, fires the M4 carbine during the 38th Annual The Adjutant General's Combat Sustainment Training Exercise (TAG Match) at Camp Smith Tra... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, CORTLANDT MANOR, N.Y. - For New York Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Michael Kapela, his seventh Adjutant General's marksmanship competition-known as the "TAG Match" -was more meaningful than his first.

Ten years ago Kapela, who has served in the Guard for 16 years, won a clean sweep of all the events during his first TAG Match as a novice, and he has competed twice at regional National Guard shooting matches and once at the national level.

This year Kapela took top honors in the individual rifle match and was also part of the rifle team that won first place.

Helping the team from his unit, the 152nd Engineer Support Company, earn first place in the rifle marksmanship event is what made this time around special, Kapela said.

Training for the match was an opportunity to teach marksmanship skills while continuing to learn new tips and techniques from other service members, Kapela explained.

He's not in it for the trophy or the recognition; he's in it to help the next generation of Soldiers, Kapela added.

"There are 101 theories out there on how to be a great shooter, but not everything will work for you," Kapela said. "It's about trying and implementing new tips until you get it right, and that's what the TAG Match gives you an opportunity to do."

Kapela has a significant amblyopia (lazy eye) and that would deter most people from pursuing both a hobby and profession that relies heavily on ocular accuracy. But he said it only strengthened his resolve to learn and try even harder.

Kapela said he uses the mantra that his father, a 35-year Army veteran combat engineer, gave to him when he was eight years old: "If you're going to show someone what you can do, first you need to show them how to get it done."

Kapela was one of 68 service members who participated in the 38th Annual "TAG Match" Combat Sustainment Training Exercise here from June 1-4, 2017.

The TAG Match is a 3-day event conducted by the New York Army National Guard to promote excellence in marksmanship training and offers Soldiers and Airmen the opportunity to test their skills and weapon systems in a battle-focused environment.

Members of the New York Naval Militia and the New York Guard, the state's volunteer self-defense force, are also invited to participate in the competition.

These skills and techniques are forged during four high-tempo and high-pressure marksmanship events, each designed to test the knowledge of weapon systems and accuracy during battle-like conditions.

The four advanced marksmanship events are the Sgt. Henry Johnson Individual Combat Rifle Match, the Sgt. Reidar Waaler Team Combat Rifle Match, the Sgt. Thomas Baker Individual Combat Pistol Match, and the Lt. Col. William Donovan Team Combat Pistol Match.

Each event is named in honor of a past Medal of Honor recipient from New York Army National Guard units.

The matches are a mix of both team and individual timed events that combine three different firing positions, quick movements to varying locations and short sprints, all of which simulate combat scenarios.

Aside from improved marksmanship techniques, one of the benefits to participating in the TAG Match is that everyone from the supporting staff to the competitors gets a chance to network with peers outside of their military branches.

Sgt. Michael Ryan, a Soldier with the New York Army National Guard's 827th Horizontal Engineer Company, has been a part of the TAG Match support staff in the past and was a competitor this year.

"The best asset that staff and participants come away with is the people," said Ryan. "There's Soldiers, Airmen and militia competing together; we'll end up working together and seeing each other out there when responding to state active duty missions."

The collaboration at the TAG Match helps to build relationships among competitors, while the peer instruction and coaching allows Soldiers to hone their craft and bring new knowledge to their units.

"The TAG Match trains Soldiers to first gain individual proficiency and then gauge proficiency in others," said Maj. Christopher Culpepper, the officer-in-charge of the TAG Match and deputy operations officer of the 53rd Troop Command. "This is an important skill that improves every level of the organization from the individual Soldier to the unit and ultimately the New York National Guard."

The overall match champion, based on a summary of scoring across all categories, were Soldiers of the New York Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry.

The winners for this year's match were:

INDIVIDUAL AWARDS

The Sgt. Henry Johnson Individual Rifle Match

1st Place: Staff Sgt. Michael A. Kapela - 152nd Engineer Company

2nd Place: Spc. Nick S. Austin - 145th Maintenance Company

3rd Place: Senior Airman Shannon Carr - 107th Security Forces Squadron

Novice: Spc. Nicholas K. Jenkins - 204th Engineer Battalion

The Sgt. Thomas Baker Individual Combat Pistol Match

1st Place: Staff Sgt. Blake H. Alexander - 1108th Ordnance Company (EOD)

2nd Place: Staff Sgt. Michael A. Kapela - 152nd Engineer Company

3rd Place: Senior Airman Shannon Carr - 107th Security Forces Squadron

Novice: Sgt. Gabor Kolman - Headquarters Company, 1-69th Infantry

TEAM AWARDS

The Sgt. Reidar Waaler Team Combat Rifle Match

1st Place: The Gravediggers (The 152nd Engineer Company)

Staff Sgts. Michael Kapela and Raphael Ramos, Spc. Tyler Studd and 1st Lt. Christopher Tornabene

2nd Place: Fighting 69th (1st Battalion, 69th Infantry)

Spc. Felipe Diaz, Staff Sgt. Matthew Flower, Sgt. Gabor Kolman and Staff Sgt. Matthew Melendez

3rd Place: Team Niagara (107th Security Forces Squadron)

Senior Airmen Shannon Carr and Anthony Capizzi, Technical Sgt. Michael Bauer and Airman First Class Colin King

The Lt. Col. William Donovan Combat Team Pistol Match

1st Place: Fighting 69th (1st Battalion, 69th Infantry)

2nd Place: Team Niagara (107th Security Forces Squadron)

3rd Place: The Gravediggers (152nd Engineer Company)

Combat Match Champions

1st Place: Fighting 69th (1st Battalion, 69th Infantry)

2nd Place: Team Niagara (107th Security Forces Squadron)

3rd Place: The Gravediggers (152nd Engineer Company)

###

Related Links:

National Guard

National Guard Twitter

National Guard Facebook