With this new school year means a new rifle team with old rifle team members as well. This upcoming school year has Cadets Zachary Mitchell, Gabriel Vanorden, and Joseph Wilson joining the team this year alongside cadets Frankie Correa, Morgan Pike, Carson Way, Savannah Solomon, Rachel Blumhardt, James Courtney. and David Constatine. They have won all four of the Matches this year, beating Montgomery Bell Academy who they have never beaten before. They've also competed in McGavock and The Chapultepec Challenge where it was a biathlon. In the Biathlon, they would fire some shots, then run around the school. This would add the challenge of regaining their breath while shooting. They have also competed in the Lancaster Match. In the first rifle match New Rifle team member Gabriel Vanorden got his first sharpshooter badge and got his final Expert Badge at the most recent match against Montgomery Bell Academy.
When I asked The Rifle Team Captain and Major about this rifle season and how they think the new cadets will do, this is what they said:
Major Intilli: "Well we're 4 & 0 so far" and he also said "Tonight the Bear Longrifles hosted Gallatin, Greenhill, and McGavock JROTC teams in the annual Lancaster International 60-rd standing match. Named for the iconic American Pennsylvania Long Rifle carried by pioneers such as Davey Crockett, Daniel Boone, and Daniel Morgan the match pays tribute to the early pioneers and riflemen. This match was unique in that all four services were represented, and all of them brought a great deal of skill to the match as it was very close. We nudged out Gallatin for the win with a score of 1632-1609, only a 29 point spread, with Greenhill and McGavock coming in 3rd and 4th respectively. Frankie Correa made the top 3, coming in 2nd behind a Gallatin cadet."
Rifle Team Captain Frankie Correa: "Our new team members? They are progressing so much faster than I had anticipated! They are all greatly valued members of the team, and same as the veteran Shooters on this team, they were asked to be on the team for a reason. It's still absolutely unreal how almost all of our new Shooters advanced to a more experienced level of marksmanship. This is shown by the badges they wear on their uniforms. I could go on and on about our new team members, but I'm going to leave it at this: this team wouldn't be where it is right now without these amazing cadets and their marksmanship skill sets. I couldn't ask for a better team"
When I asked other Rifle Team Captains what they thought about our Golden Bear Longrifles, this is what they said
Major Charlie Medley at Gallatin High School: "MJ High has one of the most organized and experienced marksmanship programs I have had the pleasure to work with in my 13 years as a JROTC teacher. The team members are serious about there sport and work well as a team. Major Intilli is an outstanding coach who, along with his team, hosts exceptional competitions."
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