Haley Duke was only 9 years old when she decided she wanted to go to West Point after attending R-Day for her sister Diana. Haley and her three older sisters, Diana, Kelley and Adrienne, have already made history at West Point. The Duke sisters, were the first four sisters to consecutively be admitted to USMA.
For youngsters, especially girls, thinking of the military, Haley has some advice: "It’s an adjustment, but the best way to make an adjustment is to try. Civil Air Patrol and Junior ROTC are the best ways to find out if the military is for you." Read More
Cadets visited the Gregor Gracie Academy and engaged in informative and initiated discussions. Interesting topics were covered that included Gregor Gracie’s personal story, some of the history of Brazils involvement in Africa in WWII, and how the Brazilian army is constructed in comparison to the United States Army. The cadets bonded, trained and interacted with members of the Academy, and competitive Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fighters.
The Army West Point Fencing Team was pleased to support the Superintendent's Breakfast through DCA. Cadets Dan Kurtzahn, Taylor Sharpsten, Cody West and Rachel Pennington all took part. Display of the National Championship Trophies, the 3 weapons of fencing (sabre, epee, foil) and competitive gear were all on display to create a very visually appealing plus interactive area. Cadets enjoyed their time with Alumni and also with LTG Caslen who stopped by to talk with the cadets and get a photo.
Thirty cadets from the West Point Orienteering Team competed in the 2017 US Classic Champs located on the grounds of the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, VA. Cadets Branton Fletcher '21, Samuel Haseman '21, and Jack Whalen (exchange USNA '19) took 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively in the Men's Orange race. Cadets Jesson Penaflor '20 placed in the Men's Green race, Spencer Myers '21 in the Men's 18 category, Julianne Meany '21 in the Female Orange race and Arelena Shala '20 in the Female Green race. The team also took time to visit the National Museum of the Marine Corps.
Army West Point head football coach Jeff Monken has been announced as a finalist for the 2017 Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award, which is given annually by the Football Writers Association of America in conjunction with the All State Sugar Bowl. The winner is set to be named during a National Football Foundation news conference at the New York Hilton Midtown. In alphabetical order the eight finalists are: Bill Clark, UAB; Scott Frost, UCF; Lane Kiffin, Florida Atlantic; Jeff Monken, Army; Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma; Kirby Smart, Georgia; Dabo Swinney, Clemson; and Jeff Tedford, Fresno State. 
The Army Martial Arts Team did an incredible job at the third Eastern Collegiate Tae Kwon Do Conference (ECTC) tournament of season at Brown University. Most notably the men's A1 team consisting of cadets Matthew Galea, Jordan Nettles and Christopher Bang outclassed the completion and secured the gold medal in the men's black belt division. Mathew Galea demonstrated his ability to perform well under pressure by winning the match with a powerful punch to the chest in a tie breaker. The A1 middleweight, Jordan Nettles, secured the teams victory by landing a power sidekick in the last seconds of the fight crushing the other teams hope for a gold medal. In the women's black belt division cadets Taylor Reim, Nicole Nettles and Katherine Lauffer secured the bronze medal in sparring. In the men's beginner division, cadets Johnathan Liu, Maddison Curry and Travis Phelan showed great promise in achieving the bronze medal for sparring. Finally, cadet Andy Vu received a bronze medal for form. The team took home the third-place trophy for overall performance at this tournament, showing that even with a team riddled with injured fighters is still one of the best.
Three cadets from the Cadet Hunt Club traveled to the Lost Owl Ranch, in Menard, Texas. Every year, ranch owners, the Ciliske Family, host Active Duty military members for a mentorship hunting weekend. The cadets hunted alongside and were mentored by CSM(R) Heinze, recently retired CSM of the First Cavalry Division and his son SGT Heinze. The cadets were also mentored by the Hunt Club OICs CPT Salem, SFC Wesserling, CPT Ciliske and CPT Tony Wrench. Over the weekend each cadet harvested a deer, prepared the meat, and then donated the meat to feed the needy in the area. The Lost Owl Ranch is in the Texas Deer Management Program and the cadets learned about land management techniques, ranch ecology, and the effects of invasive species on plants and animals in the area.
The Knightingales, an a cappella ensemble from within the Glee Club, dedicated an evening to improving technique and building camaraderie at the home of the McAleesejergins family. SSG McAleesejergins is a vocalist for the Benny Havens Band, and her husband has professionally sung with and coached a cappella groups. With their help, the Knightingales focused on concepts to enhance technical proficiency and meaningful expression, then applied these concepts to record a verse of new music.
The West Point Student Chapter of the Society of American Military Engineers (SAME) hosted the Rowan University Student Chapter of SAME. This was the first meeting between the New York and New Jersey student chapters and was over 18 months in the making based upon collaboration between LTC Schreiner, LTC Wallen and Ms. Thames. The group began with a meet and greet over lunch. Discussion highlights included introductions, sharing best practices between the two student chapters regarding activities and maintaining a vibrant organization, and recommendations for future joint activities between the two student chapters. The group continued the visit with an official tour of West Point which was followed by a personalized tour of the Arvin Physical Fitness Center, Mess Hall, and the Army Tank outside Mahan Hall by the West Point club members. The two universities integrated well and built the foundation for a strong partnership.
Two Cadet-Athletes of the Army West Point women's track and field team earned Patriot League Athlete of the Week honors after starting their season at the Crowell Open on Saturday. Calli McMullen received Patriot League Female Track Athlete of the Week honors, while Briyah Brown was chosen as the Patriot League Female Field Athlete of the Week. McMullen, a yearling from Haddock, Ga., placed first in the 60m dash with a time of 7.79, which was the top Patriot League time for that distance last weekend. She also helped the team to a first-place title in the 4x400m relay with a time of 4:02.99. Brown, a firstie from New Rochelle, N.J., won the shot put with a 15.20m throw, which ranked first in the Patriot League and third nationally so far this season. Additionally, she finished third in the weight throw with a 16.20m toss. 
Army West Point Women's Team Handball hosted Northeast Team Handball League games at Arvin gym. They matched up against UNC, New York City and the D.C. Diplomats in four games. Both the Black and Gold teams fought hard against all their opponents, beating UNC twice.
An old piece of plywood, painted white with small black letters on it. Nothing special. It's screwed to the wall outside the football locker room in a spot that most people would never see. But the location doesn't matter. The words that are painted on it are much more significant. The words are simple and come from an old Scottish ballad by Sir Andrew Barton.
The Fencing Team had an outstanding start to their regular season coming up with a winning record in a field of all varsity teams at both Vassar and Hunter Colleges. The Women posted a fantastic 10-3 record beating out any prior season results. Taylor Sharpsten racked up an impressive 28 wins beating her prior record, with her sabre weapon squad team mates of Callie Peace and Helen Schroeder also contributing bout wins towards Sabre's overall 9 squad wins. Amy Yang garnered 23 wins over the 2 weekends exceeding her prior duel meet record. Rachel Pennington led the way with her wins setting her own personal best at the season start, and her team mates in her weapon squad Mia Melgoza and Taylor Krug working towards their total 8 team wins at the Matt Lampell '49 Invitational – hosted by Vassar in honor of their former Coach who was also a West Point Alumnus. The Women Finished in Second beating out Vassar College for the slot and right behind Drew University. This was the highest showing for the women in four years. The Men competed in MAAC Conference Matches ranking third.
For the fourth time this season, the Army West Point hockey team defeated a ranked opponent after topping No. 13 New Hampshire 4-3 on the road Saturday night. The Black Knights are now undefeated against nationally ranked teams this season. Army improves to 4-0 against ranked opponents this year, the most wins in the country for teams who have also not lost to a ranked foe. The Black Knights are now 2-1-0 against non-league opponents. Jared Dempsey made a career-high 37 saves on the night, with his previous high being 24. Brendan Soucie and Dominic Franco teamed up for the second night in a row to make Army's first goal possible. The goal was Soucie's 25th point of his career, while the assist marked his 12th on the year and 25th of his career. Tyler Pham snapped his three-game scoreless streak with Army's second goal of the night. It was his fifth goal of the year and 26th of his four-year career. Zack Evancho secured a goal and an assist in tonight's contest to secure the seventh multi-point game in his career. Franco netted his first career game-winning goal in the third period. His two-point performance was his fifth of the season. 
Nine cadets from the American Society of Engineering Management Club conducted a site visit of FM Global’s research campus in West Gloucester, RI. FM Global is a leader in real estate insurance and conducts its own research and engineering at their state of the art facility. Mr. Johnell Holly '95, VP for Operations Management (Northeast Region), provided a great overview of how FM Global incorporates system engineering and other disciplines into its research and insurance operations to lower the potential for loss and transfer risk. He also discussed the value of his West Point education and considerations for transitioning from the military to civilian workforce. Additional discussion included resilience, risk and risk mitigation, and property loss prevention.
Some of the most notable placings are as follows: Team Captain Matilda Brady '19 placed second in her Intermediate Flat Class; Madyson Paul '21 placed second in her Advanced Walk-Trot-Canter Class; Haley Middleton '21 won her Walk-Trot-Canter Class with fellow teammate Sydney Campbell '21 earning a strong second; Carolin Ruwe '18 earned third place in her Walk-Trot-Canter Class; Suzanna Del Rio '21 and Cali Palumbo '18 both took impressive seconds in their Walk-Trot classes, and Lucy Harrill '21 earned third place in her Walk-Trot Class. Rounding out the semester with so many high achievements proves once again that their hard work and dedication has made them a force to be reckoned with. The team is looking forward their next competition on February 18th in their first horse show of the New Year at Crosswinds Equestrian Center in Lagrangeville, NY.
The Department of Physics and Nuclear Engineering hosted over 300 cadets and faculty for a question and answer session with astronauts on board the International Space Station. Astronauts COL(R) Mark Vande Hei (Flight Engineer), Expedition 53 Commander Randy Bresnik, and Flight Engineer Joe Acaba entertained the audience with anecdotes and sage advice regarding their experiences in space, in the Army, and in life. Coordination for the event began last spring when we requested, and were approved for, an educational downlink through NASA’s educational outreach program. One of the questions allowed COL(R) Vande Hei to demonstrate the air lock through which he launched the Space and Missile Defense Command’s Kestral Eye satellite.
