JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska –
Amid the biting wind and relentless rain of a chilly Alaska spring, 44 determined marksmen gathered for The Adjutant General’s Match June 3-5, put on annually by Alaska National Guard.
The competition brought together Soldiers and Airmen from across the state, in an event that reinforced the AKNG’s focus on readiness and lethality, ensuring its members remain disciplined, capable, and mission-ready in any environment.
Competitors engaged in both individual and team-based shooting exercises using standard-issue military weapons, including the M4 carbine rifle and M17 pistol. Events ranged from reflexive fire and timed transitions between targets to longer-range marksmanship and stress shoots simulating combat conditions. These events not only highlighted individual skill but reinforced unit-level lethality and readiness.
The Alaska Army Guard’s plans officer and state training noncommissioned officer Maj. Sean Gilbert and Sgt. 1st Class David Gulley spearheaded the event with assistance from Army Guard support staff personnel who performed ammunition handling, range safety and medic duties.
The planning team bolstered this year’s TAG match by coordinating with the National Guard Bureau’s Marksmanship Training Center in Arkansas to enhance the competition experience.
“We’ve really refined our pre-planning processes this year with what we learned at the NGMTC,” Gilbert said. “The courses of fire are a lot more involved and really take it to the next level for our competitors.”
The field of competitors was intentionally narrowed this year to allow for better marksmanship training for each individual competitor. Staff Sgt. Urena Perez, an AKARNG infantry squad leader with Avalanche Company, 1st Battalion, 297th Infantry Regiment said that the competition helped keep his fundamentals sharp.
“It’s been good to practice hasty firing positions and learning to maneuver more efficiently, while acquiring targets quickly,” Perez said. “In the infantry, our goal is to eliminate the enemy as quickly as possible when we have eyes on them in an open area and this has been great training for that.”
The competition saw servicemembers from specialties ranging from combat arms to supply and logistics, highlighting that lethality isn’t confined to one career field in the Guard. The Alaska Air National Guard’s 176th Logistics Readiness Squadron commander Lt. Col. Joshua Locke said the benefits for his team were all encompassing.
“Even in a logistics unit you never know where you will find yourself. I spent 6 months in Afghanistan as a Combat Advisor for all logistics in the country basically living with the Afghans, marksmanship was very important,” Locke said. “My boss mentioned that in the military we have a mandate to be lethal so that’s why we are out here.”
Each year, TAG match planners extend an invite to active-duty units across Alaska to compete. This year, Alaska Guardsmen competed next to their peers from the 11th Airborne Division and U.S. Coast Guard. One member of the Alaska State Defense Force also contended.
The AKANG’s 210th Rescue Squadron took honors in top overall team, with best individual score and best rifle score going to Master Sgt. Alejandro Romero, also from the unit. The AKARNG’s Spc. Luke Barnes, assigned to Bison Co., 1-297th IN took top honors in best pistol marksmanship.
During the culminating award ceremony, AKNG Adjutant General Torrence Saxe gave high praise to the competitors for embodying the warrior ethos.
“People don’t fight for the hatred that’s in front of them. They fight for the love of what’s behind them and the people they protect,” Saxe said. “There’s an unbroken, continuous line of people who came before us dating back to 1636 and I’m very proud of each one of you for upholding that legacy.”
The 2025 AKNG TAG Match, a 3-day test of skill, grit, and precision under pressure bolstered the newest Secretary of Defense’s message to the force given early in 2025, calling for the military to revive the warrior ethos and hold high and uncompromising standards in lethality and readiness.
The commander’s cup, another shooting competition for Guard commanders, sergeant majors and first sergeants will be held this winter. The planning team said they look forward to continuing to pursue the standard of excellence they were able to hone during TAG match 2025 in upcoming winter events aimed at enhancing arctic warfighting capabilities.