Best Warrior

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BALTIMORE – Fourteen competitors from throughout the Army National Guard are slated to battle it out in a physically and mentally challenging five-day competition to determine the Army Guard’s Soldier and Noncommissioned Officer of the year July 14-18 in locations throughout Maryland.

Hosted by the Maryland Army National Guard the 2025 Army National Guard Best Warrior Competition tests competitors on a variety of tactical and technical tasks including weapons proficiency, land navigation, emergency medical tasks, and combat casualty care. These tasks are completed over a grueling set of courses throughout the state that includes multiple timed ruck marches and the Army Combat Fitness Test.

Winners in the competition – one Soldier and one NCO – are named the Army Guard’s Soldier and NCO of the Year and will compete in the Department of the Army Best Squad Competition this fall. Runners-up in the Best Warrior Competition fill out the Army Guard squad competing in the Best Squad Competition based on their finish in Best Warrior.

Competitors in this year’s Army Guard Best Warrior Competition include:

Soldier Category
Spc. Adam Andrews - Rhode Island
Spc. Robert Ruiz-Rhoades – Pennsylvania
Spc. Jaden Hughes - Alabama
Spc. Logan Rutledge – Indiana
Spc. Alexander Thomson – Nebraska
Spc. Canyon Blassingame - Montana
Sgt. Michael Fouts – Arizona

NCO Category
Sgt. Kristopher Piwowarczyk - New Jersey
Staff Sgt. Miles Crawford – Maryland
Staff Sgt. Nicolas White – Georgia
Staff Sgt. Brandon Byrne - Wisconsin
Sgt. Luke Entz – Nebraska
Sgt. Matthew Lee – Montana
Sgt. Luke Cloward - Utah

Video Gallery

Video by Cpl. Keegan Jones

U.S. Marines with MRF-D 25.3, Philippine Marines, Australian Army take part in Combined Joint Forcible Entry Operation

Marine Rotational Force - Darwin

Aug. 30, 2025 | 1:24

U.S. Marines with Marine Rotational Force – Darwin 25.3, Philippine Marines with Marine Battalion Landing Team 7, and Australian Army soldiers with 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, conduct a Combined Joint Forcible Entry Operation as part of Exercise Alon in San Vicente, Philippines, Aug. 24, 2025. Exercise Alon is a bilateral amphibious training activity between the Australian Defence Force and the Armed Forces of the Philippines, supported by MRF-D and the Royal Canadian Navy. The exercise focuses on enhancing interoperability and readiness to respond to shared security challenges. MRF-D is an annual six-month rotational deployment to enhance interoperability with the Australian Defence Force and allies and partners and provide a forward postured crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific. (This video contains music from a USMC enterprise licensed asset from Universal Music Production: Drained Wide Open by David Ogoglia / universalproductionmusic.com) (Australian Army B-ROLL by Leading Aircraftman Ryan Howell) (U.S. Marine Corps video by Cpl. Keegan Jones)