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

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Video by Master Sgt. Helen Miller

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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer along with Maj. Gen. Paul D. Rogers, attended a ribbon cutting ceremony for the newly modernized Michigan Army National Guard (MIARNG) Grand Ledge Armory.

46th Military Police Command

Sept. 26, 2022 | 0:22

“There are nearly 1,500 tough, strong women serving in the MIARNG, a number that has grown over the last couple of years, but few of the facilities that guard members use have been updated to serve women in uniform,” said Gov. Whitmer. “Earlier this year, in my fourth balanced, bipartisan state budget, we included $100 million to modernize our state’s armories to better serve the women who serve our state. The Grand Ledge Armory is the first of 33 facilities statewide that will be upgraded with new facilities to ensure women in uniform have the same basic facilities their male counterparts have and can stay focused on their mission. I will work with anyone to support the brave service members of Michigan’s National Guard. They keep us safe at home and oceans away and we must have their backs.”

“I’m excited that we’ve reached this significant milestone of completing the first modernization project and I’m looking forward to monitoring our progress at the Grayling Army Airfield Armory and getting underway at seven additional locations this year,” said Maj. Gen. Paul D. Rogers, adjutant general and director of the Michigan Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. “As more women join the MIARNG, these new facilities are vital to make sure our troops feel supported and have the resources necessary to thrive and be mission-ready.”

Maj. Gen. Rogers and Gov. Whitmer highlighted the work that is being done to modernize MIARNG facilities to better serve Michigan’s women soldiers including the addition of new shower and toilet facilities and lactation rooms.

The ceremony comes shortly after Gov. Whitmer signed into law the State of Michigan’s fiscal year 2023 budget, which authorized $100 million in funds ($50 million state/$50 million federal) to modernize current facilities used by the MIARNG to address inequities that exist in the facilities provided to Michigan’s women service members. Of the 33 facilities targeted for modernization with this investment, Grayling Army Airfield Armory is slated to be completed next while construction will commence shortly at seven additional facilities this calendar year: Albion Armory, Gladstone Armory, Ishpeming Armory, Kalamazoo Armory, Port Huron Armory, Traverse City Armory and Washtenaw Armory.