DCA Update - Extracurricular Clubs

Competitive Clubs

Triathlon:

• On 8 March, the West Point Triathlon team hosted an indoor time trial for the Northeast Collegiate Triathlon Conference (NECTC) in the team’s state-of-the-art indoor Compu-Trainer studio in Cullum Hall
• The indoor event was an inclement weather alternative to the duathlon planned at Camp Buckner
• Athletes throughout the NECTC, to include Syracuse, Rutgers, Bentley, and Yale, came to compete head-to-head at the Central Park time trial simulation
• The event was open to the public and there were three non-collegiate athletes who tested their skills on the course
• In addition to hosting the event, five West Point Cadets raced with CDT Paige Dougherty (‘18), putting down the fastest female time in her first-ever cycling competition
• Top collegiate male score went to James Peterson of Bentley University, who is also NECTC conference director
• The overall fastest time was set by Mr. Richard Ringling, who is a DOD school teacher at West Point Middle School, as well as a volunteer representative for the West Point Triathlon team
• In addition to serving as a great racing event, the indoor TT served as a sanctioned conference qualifier for the USA Triathlon National Championship in Clemson, SC, on 24 April 2015

Marathon:

• On 8 March, the West Point Marathon Team participated in the Celebrate Life Half Marathon in Rock Hill, NY
• The Celebrate Life Half Marathon supports cancer victims who cannot afford their treatment
• The West Point Marathon Team took all top four overall spots, despite running in the sleet and snow
• First place was CDT Connor Roche with a time of 1:16:57; second place was CDT Chris Boyle with a time of 1:17:14; third place was CDT Aaqib Syed with a time of 1:17:35; fourth place was CDT Jake Schmitz with a time of 1:17:38; CDT Jennifer Moore placed fourth in her age bracket with a time of 1:39:39

Climbing:

• On 7 March, cadets from the competitive and recreational rock climbing teams traveled to the Catskill Mountains in order to train on the fundamentals of ice climbing
• The purpose of the training was to increase confidence in the equipment as well as increase reactivity in novel and uncomfortable situations
• Climbing the ice required cadets to be physically resilient, persistent, adaptable, and critical thinkers; all participants left with a better appreciation for the technical and physical difficulty of the sport

Team Handball (Men’s):

• This past weekend, the West Point Men’s Team Handball Club hosted the annual CPT Scott Pace Memorial Tournament
• CPT Pace was a West Point graduate and fellow Handball player, who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving in Afghanistan on June 6, 2012
• Teams from around the country, as well as Canada, competed in the tournament providing a very challenging pool of competition
• On Friday evening, the “Black” team took on Air Force Academy and defeated the Falcons by a 16 point margin
• The “Gold” team struggled in their early games and suffered close losses to Chicago Inter HC, WP Black, and NYAC 2
• WP Black came out to a great start on Saturday, defeating NYAC 2, WP Gold, and later CalHeat HC in a tightly condensed match; WP Gold got the first win of the tournament against NYC 2 that afternoon
• WP Black’s 4-0 record propelled them to the semifinal games where they took on a Chicago team that had given them trouble in the past; WP Black spurred on by a great defensive effort from the entire team, and defeated the Chicago Squad 28-20, moving them into the Championship game
• WP Gold secured victories over NYC 2 again and NYAC 2
• WP Black faced NYC in the championship game; NYC is one of the most dominant teams in the country, and unfortunately WP Black succumbed to their skilled play
• An awards ceremony was held after the conclusion of the championship game where Firstie Goalie David Brown was award Most Valuable Goalie plaque; also, Captain Coree Aten was recognized for being the leading scorer of the tournament

Equestrian:

• On 7 March, the West Point Equestrian Team traveled to Briarwood Farm (Black River Stables) in Ringoes, NJ, to participate in the last English riding show of the semester be-fore Regional’s
• The team competed against Centenary, Bard, Marist, Drew, William Paterson, SUNY New Paltz, Sarah Lawerence, Stevens Institute of Technology, Kutztown, and Vassar
• The team did an excellent job and took the title of Reserve Champions
• CDTS Laivan Greene, Danielle Diulus, and Jared Ross placed 1st in Class 1 (walk/trot); CDT Madeline Arnold placed 2nd in intermediate Fences and 1st in Intermediate Flat; she will go on to English Regional’s
• CDT Crystel Calderon placed 1st in walk/trot/canter and will also be going to Regional’s for English and Semi-Finals for Western
• CDTs Moira Fontenot and Alex Vinson placed 2nd in their classes of Novice Fences and walk/trot/canter
• The team had a successful season with eight of its members going to English Regional’s for English and Western styles

Fencing:

• The West Point Women’s Fencing Team, after completing a winning season record, qualified to compete in the National Women’s Fencing Conference Championship sponsored by the NIWFA at Lafayette College; Army set the standard as one of the only club teams who qualified nationally
• CDT Tessa Knight finished as the highest ever for West Point Women’s Fencing in the weapon of Epee for West Point, taking 17th place in a pool of 950 women; her leadership helped bring the Epee Squad to their highest finish in the championship
• CDT Alex Blair led her women’s sabre weapon squad to their highest finish as well, and advanced to the individual finals, a bracket of 16, as one of the only Army Fencers to achieve this; she finished 16th, and was also awarded the NIWFA All Academic Conference Award
• The Men’s Fencing Team qualified for the championship, and after outpacing rival Navy throughout the day, came out on top as the Club Championship 3-Weapon team
• CDT Marvin Hargraves finished 2nd place in a hard fought combative bout against an opponent from William and Mary in the finals 16 bracket; the Epee Weapon Squad also finished 2nd place overall
• In the weapon of Sabre, CDT Blake Gordon also finished 2nd place, only being defeated by a nationally ranked fencer from John Hopkins; the Sabre Squad took home a 3rd place finish
• The Men’s Team was also honored with the MAC Conference Team Sportsmanship Award for the third year in a row

Water Polo:

• Last weekend the Army Water Polo team hosted the 6th Annual Memorial Tournament, formerly known as the John Hallett Memorial Tournament
• This event was a three-pool, 42 game tournament in Arvin Gymnasium; the players were in charge of set-ting up all three pools, planning out the game schedule, and hosting the Naval Academy Cadets for the weekend
• Army played in five of the games, while simultaneously working as lifeguards, and staffing scoring and timing tables in all 42 of the games
• The team’s first game was on Saturday morning against Maryland; Army won the game 11-9, led by top scorers CDTs Brenden Cagney and Shelby Lee
• The team’s second game was against Navy that afternoon; both teams traded goals until the very end, with Army coming out on top 8-7, also winning the Star Match
• Army finished out the day with only one loss to Boston
• On day two of the tournament, the Army team went to have one loss, to Greenwich, and one win, to NYC Le Femme
• Many players got playing time in these games, and the team was able to get a good idea on where the team will be at next season
• The tournament went very smoothly, and the Army team looks forward to hosting a CWPA tournament next fall

Academic Clubs

Model Arab League:

• From 6–9 March, eleven cadets of the West Point Model Arab League set out for the Southern California Regional Model at La Verne University in the foothills east of Los Angeles, CA
• Upon arrival at the conference, the cadets represented the Syrian National Coalition and the Kingdom of Morocco in a parliamentary competition against other schools from the region
• In order to return to West Point before Monday, the cadets had to depart before the final plenary and awards session, but feedback from other advisors indicated that the team won several awards

Wargames Committee:

• On 6 March, five cadets for the Wargames Committee Club traveled to the Lancaster, PA, to participate in the Cold War Convention, hosted by the Historical Miniature Wargames Society
• All of the cadets involved had a fun and educational experience playing wargames themed in the age of the Roman Empire, to the killing of Bin Ladin, and everything in between
• The cadets also had a lot of exposure to the convention goers, as they were very easily recognized wearing their Cadet Grey’s
• Almost every convention attendee was extremely excited to see the cadets and interact with them, especially at a historically themed convention such as this

Debate:

• On 6 March, the Army Debate Team traveled to compete in the JV and Novice National Tournament, which was hosted this year by Binghamton University
• The trip was very successful for the Army Team, with the Novice Team Army GM, CDTs Seamus Matlack and Quintessa Gould, placing second over all at the national tournament
• Also, the Novice Team Army CW, CDTs TJ Collins and Matt Watts, advanced to out rounds, but were forced out due to the Army GM team being the stronger of the two
• CDT Matlack received the 14th speaker award in the Novice Tournament

Support Clubs

Pipes & Drums:

• On 3 March, the Pipes and Drums and the dancers were invited to the SUPT’s house for an Ice Cream Social
• The band was recognized by the SUPT for its excellence in defeating Navy in the annual Army-Navy Battle of the Pipe Bands
• The cadets received a house tour of Quarters 100 and enjoyed socializing in the parlor while eating
• The members of the band especially enjoyed looking through old yearbooks for photos of the band, and some enjoyed researching pictures of their Old Grad Parents
• The band made quite an impression on LTG Caslen, as they appeared at the event dressed in Highland casual; Pipe Major Coulter played the band into the SUPT’s house on his Pipes as well
• Overall it was great to see the cadets recognized for excellence and we hope this will inspire them moving into second semester and next year

Parachute:

• This past weekend, the West Point Parachute Team sent three cadets to Nashua, NH, in order to learn Vertical Formation Skydiving (VFS)
• During this trip, SFC Diaz and LTC Alex MacCalman taught the three team members how to fly on their backs, a crucial skill that must be mastered before moving on to sit flying and head down vertical flying
• This was the first tunnel trip for the Class of 2018, and for many of them, it was their first time belly flying
• The coaching staff spent the day teaching the newest members of the team the basics of flying on their belly, and by the end of the day all were able to fly stable

Military Clubs

Small Unit Tactic Club:

• On 15 Feb., the USMA Small Unit Tactic Club visited NYC to discuss subterranean operations with the New York Fire Department (FDNY)
• The Small Unit Tactic Club spent the past three months studying the tactics, techniques and procedures required to operate in these environments, and the trip to NYC was a chance to experience the environment first hand while hearing lessons learned from the firemen
• The FDNY senior members shared tactical lessons learned from experience, including how to communicate, navigate, and conduct casualty evacuation in subterranean environments
• The group began the day by touring the East Side Access Construction Site, an active construction site being executed by the NYC Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to bring the Long Island Rail Road in to a new East Side station that will travel under and connect to Grand Central Terminal
• This project is the largest construction site in the United States and just hap-pens to be 160 feet underground, and provided the cadets with real life experience of operating in subterranean environments (tunnels, caves, subways, and underground railroads)
• The group was escorted by Bill Goodrich (USMA ‘73), who is the Executive Vice President and Senior Program Executive for the East Side Access Project
• The cadets also toured Grand Central Station to gain an under-standing of a completed complex infrastructure site containing many levels of subterranean environments; the group was escorted by Metro-North’s Fire Chief, Sal Oliva
• The tour included active steam tunnels, labyrinths of subway and railway access tunnels, and central power and railroad command/control operation sites

Hobby Clubs

Alpine Ski:

• From 1-7 March, the Army Alpine Ski Team participated in the U.S. Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association Nationals at Mt. Bachelor, OR
• Over 100 of the top skiers from the country were present to compete for individual and team titles in Giant Slalom (GS) and Slalom (SL); CDTs Chris Emerson, Josh Ische, Patrick Kearney, Ayrne Riley and Sawyer Harkins all competed in the Nationals
• CDT Emerson had a solid GS finish, although he struggled a little in his first SL run, he ended with a solid-fast 2d run in SL
• CDT Ische finished the season very strong with the teams fastest over-all times in both GS and SL
• CDT Harkins made a strong showing in SL; CDTs Kearney and Riley completed both of their runs in GS and SL
• The entire team benefited from competing with some of the Nation’s fastest racers and longer courses, and will carry the experience moving forward to the next season

Ultimate Frisbee:

• From 28 Feb.– 1 Mar., the West Point Ultimate Frisbee Club hosted its first annual West Point Classic
• Entering the event as the last seed, Army was ready to showcase the results of all their hard work and practice
• During day one, Army preserved through temperatures in the teens in order to go 3-0, including wins over Central Connecticut State 13-4, 11-10 against the number one seed Wesleyan, and 11-5 against Wentworth Tech
• Day two brought the arrival of snow and slippery fields, a detriment to Army’s superior athleticism
• Army lost 13-8 to the team that would go on to the championship game, Bates
• Army then entered the final game for third and fourth place, but Army was narrowly defeated by Central Connecticut State
• Hamilton University from Clinton, NY, defeated Bates from Boston, MA, for the championship
• Hosting a successful tournament and playing, Army finished at 3-2 in its first outing of the season
• Army Ultimate will be traveling to New Jersey at the end of March to compete once again at the Garden State annual tournament; on 2 May, Army will face Navy in a head-to-head match-up up in NYC

Sailing:

• On 7 and 8 March, the Army Sailing Team competed in their first regatta of the season
• Although the Hudson may still be frozen, Army Sailing competed at Old Dominion University in mere 34 degree water
• Despite the fierce competition, Army Sailing came from behind to defeat Princeton, Drexel and Stevens Institute, but fell to some sailing powerhouse schools such as New York Maritime and St. Mary’s College
• CDTs Mike Danke (‘17) and Mike Wegner (‘17) performed exceptionally well as the wind speeds peaked at about 14 mph on Sunday
• In addition to the regatta, the team attended the Hampton Roads Founders Day Dinner at Ft. Eustis, where BG Trainor served as the guest speaker

Paintball:

• On 8 March, the Tournament Paintball Team practiced at Longlive Paintaball in Monroe Township, NJ
• The purpose of this practice was to ensure gear was in working order, refresh paintball skills, play as a team, and positively represent USMA in New Jersey
• The team practiced for approximately five hours; practice consisted of scrimmages against local teams, including teams from NEIC, such as Penn State
• Scrimmaging against competitive tournament paintball teams provided a look at different approaches to playing certain layouts, as well as how to play against different types of skill levels

DCA Happenings

CDT Rector was the winner of the contest held at the Book Store in February, naming all of the U.S. Presidents in chronological order; the winning prize was a Skateboard. Of all of the entries, five cadets were tied, submitting 100% correct results. A playoff was held with a new challenge with CDT Rector coming in first place.