Blue Ridge Rifles take first place in invitational

2015 Mar 4

The University of North Georgia's (UNG) Blue Ridge Rifle team won first place in platoon exhibition performance at the annual Mardi Gras Invitational Drill meet, a national competition held in New Orleans each February.

Cadet Sgt. 1st Class Ake Ryan of Portsmouth, Rhode Island, a junior at UNG, was among the team members.

The team's performance outpaced teams from two other senior military colleges and two service academies and drew spectators beyond the normal judging panel.

The meet consists of seven events that test teams' confidence, attention to detail and discipline. This year, UNG's team competed in exhibition performance and color guard.

Staff Sgt. Terry Baumann, a tactical officer at UNG who serves as adviser for the team, said UNG's rifle team is unique; cadets run the unit and his role mainly is to provide logistical support.

"The cadets come up with their own routines and handle the training," Baumann said. "Other schools have staff who specifically are assigned to design drill routines and teach those routines to the cadets."

Schools competing at this year's drill meet included Texas A&M University, University of Florida, University of Texas-Austin, University of South Carolina, Norwich University, Merchant Marine Academy, West Point, University of Texas-Arlington, University of Mississippi, Auburn University, University of Memphis, Florida State University, University of Illinois, Vanderbilt University, and Southern University.

UNG is one of six senior military colleges in the country and is designated as The Military College of Georgia and as a state leadership institution.