CAMP PERRY, Ohio – SPC Amber Kingshill, 22, of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU), met her goal for the 2025 National Matches at Camp Perry – fire the scores she knows she can reach.
Leading up to the annual National Matches, facilitated each year by the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP), Kingshill had been unsatisfied with her wavering consistency in practice. As a former junior competitor with the California Grizzlies highpower team (a group that famously travels to Camp Perry every year), she was aware of the unique outdoor environment only found at the National Matches along with the extraordinary pressure that comes with competing at the renowned event – and she was eager for the challenge.
“I shoot better under match pressure, and that’s hard to simulate during practice,” she said.
She started off her 2025 National Matches campaign by claiming the High Woman honor and third overall in the prestigious President’s Rifle Match, with a score of 395-13X.
Kingshill was pleased with her scores in the match, cleaning off-hand and capitalizing on this year’s more performative President’s shoot-off for the top 20 competitors that featured a large scoring monitor and the relaying of scores over loudspeakers for the spectators in attendance. It was a mound of added pressure that she welcomed, helping her settle into her process.
Staying in stride, she returned to the range the next day to finish within the top 10 out of over 800 competitors in the equally celebrated National Trophy Individual (NTI) Match with a score of 495-22X.
She was feeling comfortable, getting back to her roots, when the greatest surprise of her National Matches career came after she completed her string in the National Trophy Team (NTT) Match.
As she waited for her teammates to finish up their own strings, she stepped back from the line and was met by a few competitors who approached her, smiling, and shook her hand.
She wasn’t sure why until they told her what she had just accomplished.
With her combined scores in the President’s Match, NTI and NTT, reaching a total of 1,281-52X, she had become just the second woman in history to overtake the coveted Mountain Man Trophy – one of the highest honors of the National Rifle Matches.
“I couldn’t stop saying, ‘That’s so cool,’” she said with a beaming grin.
Kingshill went on to add her name to another prominent National Matches event by joining forces with USMAU teammate SSG David Bahten. The pair reached the overall win in the Hearst Doubles paired event with a score of 597-20X – just missing the current record set in 2016 by only x-count.
“It was nice shooting with SSG Bahten because I was able to rely on him and all his years of shooting before me,” Kingshill said. “All I had to do was lay next to him and shoot.”
Leading the revered NTI Match with an outstanding score of 498-23X (a new Citizen Soldier Trophy record) was SSG John Coggshall, 40, of Meriden, CT and the U.S. Army Reserve. He bested the next three competitors by only one point, which included SFC Amanda Elsenboss, 36, of Williamsburg, VA, who earned the Women’s Trophy and a new record in the event.
Anna Behnke, High Junior of the President’s Match, returned to secure the same title in the NTI with a score of 494-19X (11th overall). She also secured the Col. Bill Deneke Trophy as the top junior in the aggregate for the Presidents, NTI and National Trophy Junior Team Match (which she won alongside teammate Casey Hollenbeck) – reaching a combined score of 1,280-47X.
Special congratulations also go to Spencer Strickland, 41, of Lambsburg, VA, who was the top non-distinguished competitor in the M16 Match (part of the Small Arms Firing School) and the top Non-Distinguished in the NTI, along with Christopher Wyatt, 60, of West Kingston, RI, who set a new High Senior record in the President’s Rifle Match with a score of 393-15X.
Taking home the Alice Bull Trophy as the top competitor in the President’s Match and NTI aggregate was James Fox, 40, of Albany, OR, with a score of 792-32X. This was Fox’s third time earning the award, having also done so in 2019 and 2021.
In team events, the USAMU overtook the NTT with a score of 2,916-95X. Team members were SSG Verne Conant, SPC Zevin Linse, SSG Jarrod McGaffic, SFC Alexander Deal, SSG Jared Desrosiers and SSG David Bahten. Coach was SGT Adam Fitzpatrick, while SSG Shane Butler served as Captain.
Meanwhile, the Texas State Rifle Association Gold claimed the Infantry Trophy as the overall team in the National Trophy Infantry Team Match (Rattle Battle). It was only the eighth time in the match’s 108-year history that a civilian team earned the overall title in the match.
Find a complete list of results of the 2025 National Matches at https://ct.thecmp.org/nmrifle25results. Photos of all rifle events are also available for free viewing and download on the CMP’s Zenfolio page at https://cmp1.zenfolio.com/f98188817.
SAVE THE DATE! The 2026 National Matches will be returning next summer for another month-long season of exciting competitions and clinics! View the entire 2026 calendar on the CMP website at https://thecmp.org/cmp-national-matches!
The Civilian Marksmanship Program is a federally chartered 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation that places its highest priority on firearms safety and marksmanship activities, with a focus on youth. CMP’s programs encourage personal growth and build life skills, with such initiatives as its junior training and competition programs, Affiliated Club program and scholarships providing support to citizens of all backgrounds across the nation. Learn more about the CMP at https://thecmp.org/.
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