CONCORD, N.H. –
The New Hampshire National Guard’s Combat Marksmanship Competition, attended annually by soldiers and airmen of all ranks and career fields, was conducted July 10-12 at Fort Devens, Mass.
About 60 Guardsmen of varied marksmanship experience competed in both individual and team competitions, comprising pistol, rifle, shotgun and machine gun events.
The annual competition, commonly referred to as the “TAG Match,” offers guardsmen the opportunity to hone marksmanship skills and engage targets with live ammunition at ranges up to 400 yards.
“It was a blast,” said Sgt. Nadthapong Wutisen, a Team Seacoast recruiter from Dover, who practiced extensively in preparation for the event. “I shot once a week at my local shooting range for five months.”
Wutsien earned the coveted Governor’s Twenty tab, a state award presented to the top 20 percent of shooters each year. He was also a member of the four-man “Sustainment Training Branch” team, which placed first overall.
“I’m looking forward to doing it again next year,” he said.
The individual match overall champion, Staff Sgt. David Musso, a mobilization NCO with Joint Force Headquarters, notched his second TAG Match victory in three years.
Musso credits his sustained success to a strict routine and disciplined approach to shooting.
“It’s not just because I have a lot of trigger time,” Musso explained. “It’s being repeatable. It’s being able to execute the same thing every time. Take the rifle, prone position. I keep a natural point of aim on target. My magazine is rested on the ground. My support hand is wrapped around the mag well, and my sight picture and sight alignment are always the same.”
Musso, known as “Deadshot” in marksmanship circles, also finished first overall with the rifle, and anchored the match champion Sustainment Training Branch team of Soldiers. Finishing second by a whopping 577 points were soldiers of New Hampshire Adjutant Gen. David Mikolaities’ “Purple Cobras” team, while the “Bull Shooters” squad of Airmen from Pease Air National Base placed third.
Next up for some of the guard’s top shooters is a scheduled regional match in Vermont, Aug. 20 - 23, followed by national-level event in Arkansas, Sept. 18 – 26.
Award recipients include:
Governor’s Twenty
Staff Sgt. David Musso; Staff Sgt. Joseph Wyner; Staff Sgt. Gary Roy; Staff Sgt. Connor Cunio; Sgt. Timothy Huntley; Senior Airman Igor Machedo Nunes; Sgt. Nadthapong Wutisen; Sgt. Wayne Comtois; Staff Sgt. Michael Strempfer; Staff Sgt. Sean Healey; Command Sgt. Maj. William Ferland; Sgt. Taylor Hallett; 1st Sgt. Sean McClain.
Overall Individual Aggregate Champion
Staff Sgt. David Musso
Overall Team Aggregate Champion
Sustainment Training Branch team: Staff Sgt. David Musso; Staff Sgt. Joseph Wyner; Sgt. Nadthapong Wutisen; Staff Sgt. Sean Healey.
Individual Rifle Aggregate Champion
Staff Sgt. David Musso
Individual Pistol Aggregate Champion
Staff Sgt. Joseph Wyner