Ossi Leads as CMP’s National Smallbore Sees Jump in Participation

CAMP PERRY, Ohio – With a newly configured National Matches calendar, the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) may have found a formula for success.

The refreshed lineup for 2023 was designed to allow individuals to compete in the Smallbore matches on Camp Perry’s outdoor Petrarca Range as well as in Air Gun events within the Gary Anderson CMP Competition Center located just next door – all during the same day. The change caused participation to double in some events while also rising significantly in others.

“I was blown away by the turnout for this year’s championship,” said Brad Donoho, CMP smallbore manager. “We created a very ambitious schedule and somehow pulled it off.”

Cecilia Ossi claimed the 3P Air Rifle/Smallbore Aggregate and the 3P competition.

A total of 245 individuals attended the CMP’s Smallbore series this year, taking part in the mix of Prone and Three-Position aggregate and team opportunities offered to adult and junior athletes. Age awards were also presented to those under 18 and beyond, with 25 athletes over the age of 60 competing in the matches and some even over the age of 70.

The enhanced schedule is part of the persistent effort from those within CMP’s Air Gun and Smallbore departments to make competitions as accessible as possible while also introducing new lifelong options for athletes of a variety of ages within the expanding world of marksmanship.

“This couldn’t have been done without our spectacular staff who made it all happen,” Donoho added.

The U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit led the 4-member team event.

Another exciting addition to the CMP Smallbore phase in 2023 was the inclusion of electronic targets for the first time at Camp Perry. Unlike past years, participants were able to view their scores on monitors placed at each firing point – with scores instantly added through an automatic software system.

“The introduction of the new 50 meter smallbore targets was a huge success,” Donoho said. “There were some problems along the way, but we will learn from them and be ready to make next year even better.”

With Smallbore and Air Gun events running simultaneously, the CMP created a Three-Position Smallbore and Air Rifle Aggregate Championship for those who competed in both disciplines. Earning the inaugural win in the match was Cecilia Ossi, 21, of Annandale, NJ, with a score of 2421-60X.

Back in Three-Position Smallbore, Ossi earned the top spot after firing the lead score in the qualification round and reaching the high score in the final. Following in second was SPC Jared Eddy, 22, of Midland, GA, with Griffin Lake, 18, of Emmaus, PA, landing in third.

The 2023 National Smallbore events featured electronic target scoring for the first time in its history.

Lake went on to earn second in the Junior final after being bested by Carley Seabrooke, 16, of Helena, AL. Zachary Jackson, 20, of Madison, WV, took third.

Adding more competitive fun, the Three-Position lineup included a 4-Member team event. Earning the win by a commanding 25-point lead was the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit team of SGT Jared Desrosiers, SPC Jared Eddy, SGT Patrick Sunderman and SSG Brandon Muske. Griffin Lake, Jack Ogoreuc, Natalie Welter and Brady Fowkes joined forces to win the Junior team match with an impression gap of their own – 28 points over the second place team.

A 3-Member Elimination Match was also held during the week, with Cecelia Ossi, SSG Brandon Muske and SrA Peter Fiori forming team “P B and C” to claim the overall win over USAMU teammates Desrosiers, Sunderman and Eddy. Finding third for the bronze medal was “The Decent Three” team of Dylan Gregory, Bremen Butler and Brandon Evans.

View a complete list of results of the 2023 National Smallbore Matches on the CMP’s Competition Tracker page at https://ct.thecmp.org/2023NMAirSBresults. Find photos for free viewing and download at https://cmp1.zenfolio.com/f148616975.

The Civilian Marksmanship Program is a federally chartered 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation. It is dedicated to firearm safety and marksmanship training and to the promotion of marksmanship competition for citizens of the United States. For more information about the CMP and its programs, log onto www.TheCMP.org.