CAMP PERRY, Ohio — U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit Service Pistol Team shooter Sgt. 1st Class James Henderson swept every major individual award at the annual National Pistol Championships July 12-19, breaking national records along the way.
“Sgt. 1st Class Henderson accomplished a feat that will undoubtedly be the topic of discussion among shooting circles for the foreseeable future,” said Lt. Col. Daniel Hodne, commander, USAMU.
In the pistol championships, Henderson won the Harrison Trophy as the top individual with a score of 2646, becoming the first active-duty soldier to win the national championship in 24 years. He also finished in first place in the individual .22-caliber and center-fire events.
At the National Trophy Pistol Matches, he won every event he entered and also shot on the championship team.
Henderson began the day winning the President’s Pistol Match, breaking his own record that he set a few days before by scoring 393 out of 400 with 17 bulls-eyes. Staff Sgt. John Ennis IV placed second and Staff Sgt. Lyman Grover came in third.
In the National Trophy Individual Pistol Match, Henderson won the General Cluster Trophy for the third time and set a new national record with a score of 297 out of 300, breaking a record that had stood since 1978. Park and Ennis tied for third place in the event.
Competing in the National Trophy Team Individual match, Henderson shot and a score of 291 out of 300, winning both the Military Police Corps Trophy as the top military service pistol shooter and the General Mellon Trophy as the top pistol shooter in the Army, encompassing all active, reserve and National Guard Soldiers. Ennis placed second in both categories and Park finished third in the Army category.
With all of the points in the National Team and National Individual Trophy matches combined for an aggregate score, Henderson won the U.S. Forces Command Trophy with a score of 586, breaking his own national record he held since 2007. Once again, teammates Ennis and Park came in behind Henderson for second and third place, respectively.
Henderson was also named as the Overall Individual Service Pistol Champion with a score of 981.
“What Sgt. 1st Class Henderson accomplished this season is best left undescribed, as there are no words that can put it in a context that does the feat justice,” said Sgt. 1st Class Jason St. John, service pistol team noncommissioned officer-in-charge. “Imagine that never in the history of marksmanship competition that dates over 100 years has anyone done this. No one ever has or probably ever will.”
USAMU’s Blue team won the Gold Cup Trophy as the National Trophy Pistol Team Match champion. The team was led by Henderson, Park, Ennis and Sgt. 1st Class Daryl Szarenski with a score of 1142. It was the third consecutive year that a four-man team from the USAMU won the prestigious award.
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