Fort Benning, Georgia- March 2025 – The Alabama National Guard’s Alabama Alpha team outscored 45 other teams to claim the 2025 U.S. Army Small Arms Championships held March 9-15 at Fort Benning.
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After firing more than 500 rounds across 11 matches, Alabama Alpha scored an aggregate 4401-60x. Scores from the rifle, pistol, and multi-gun matches determined the overall champions. It was the 10th consecutive year a National Guard team has won the championship.
Alabama Alpha team members Sgt. Maj. Stephen Murchison (coach), Master Sgt. Joseph Spradlin, Sgt. Gavin Blackwood and Spc. Cameron Drake competed against more than 200 marksmen from across the Army, including Active Duty, Reserve, National Guard units, and ROTC cadets.
“Winning All Army showcases the Guard’s ability to compete and excel alongside Active Duty and Reserve forces at the highest level,” said Murchison.
The Alabama National Guard also claimed the title of Rifle Team Champion.
Not far behind the Alabama Alpha, the Michigan Blue of the Michigan National Guard placed 3rd overall in the U.S. Army Small Arms Team Championship.
The U.S. Army Small Arms Championship is a week-long, live-fire training event known as All Army. The U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit hosts this annual event at the Maneuver Center of Excellence in Fort Benning. The event culminated in the multi-gun match, a high-paced challenge testing competitors’ ability to engage targets with rifles and pistols under dynamic conditions.
“The All Army brings together experienced and new shooters from all COMPOs (components), providing a chance to share knowledge and refine marksmanship skills to enhance both Soldiers and their units,” Murchison said.
“The more I learn from shooters across the Army, the more I can bring back to my Soldiers, my home unit and my entire state,” said Staff Sgt. Hunter McDowell of the Michigan National Guard.
Twelve National Guard teams from Alabama, Delaware, Kentucky, Michigan (two teams), New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, and Vermont competed in service rifle, pistol, and multi-gun matches.
National Guard teams and individuals brought home 16 of 33 top awards, finishing first in six of 11 categories.
The training platform used by the National Guard Marksmanship Training Center has been tested and proven to remain focused on precision through lethality. NGMTC aims to produce humble competitors who can teach others the value of marksmanship.
Established in 1968, the National Guard Marksmanship Training Center on Camp Joseph T. Robinson in North Little Rock, Arkansas, serves all 54 states and territories.
- By Capt. Janice Rintz, National Guard Marksmanship Training Center
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