Fishburne Raiders Look Strong in Orange County
Fishburne Military School Raiders Finish Strong in a Tough Crowd
photos by Cadet Kyle Churchwell (Herndon, VA) — Orange, VA — The Fishburne Military School Raiders (A Team) traveled to Orange County HS on Saturday to take on a field of twenty-two other Raiders units from US Army JROTC’s 4th Brigade. 
The Caissons maintained their reputation as one of the Brigade’s top Raider Units by placing first in two categories and placing in the top ten in every category.
Competition was stiff as the field consisted of at least two teams (Fishburne Military School and Orange County High School) that earned their way into the annual Best of the Best competition last spring. 4th Brigade is comprised of 318 schools and over 3000 cadets representing JROTC units from 5 states and the District of Columbia. Only 20 units earn a place in Best of the Best. Of the 54 JROTC units in Virginia, only the top 6 programs earn a slot to compete for the title of “Best of the Best”.
The Orange County Raider Meet consisted of standard Raider events, with a few wrinkles added to ramp up the challenge. The 5K Road Race was a team event with each Raider Team running in formation. The Caissons cruised through this event, finishing in First Place and beating the second-place team by more than a minute. The Litter Carry, rather than being a straight sprint, included several different obstacle course barriers that teams (competing for best time) were forced to navigate through (or over). Orange County’s version of the Tire Flip, had the Raiders not only flipping, but also navigating their tire through a maze-like course. Although the PT Test and the One-rope Bridge were straight-forward, well-practiced events, the competition was fierce.
The Fishburne Military School Raiders, Coached by MSG William Morton. USA(ret), and Commanded this year by Cadet Joseph “PT” Jones (South Fulton, TN) turned in some impressive results on the day:
First Place – All Male Category
First Place – 5K (with a time of 25:44)
Third Place – Litter Carry
Fifth Place – Overall
Sixth Place – Tire Flip
Seventh Place – Rope Bridge
Tenth Place – PT Test
The FMS A Team consisted of:
Joseph Jones (South Fulton, TN) — Commander
Matthew Farrar (Waynesboro, VA)
Matthew Diaz (Providence, RI)
James Gallagher (Copiague, NY)
Elijah Jackson (Warsaw, VA)
Corey Ransom (Virginia Beach, VA)
Riley Malone (Waynesboro, VA)
Jason Bruinius (Charlotte, NC)
The Raiders will be back in action on 28 October as they host the Fishburne Military School Raider Meet at Coyner Springs Park.
Fishburne Military School is the oldest and smallest of all military schools for boys in Virginia. Its college-prep curriculum is built on the structure of an Army JROTC program. FMS has been designated as a JROTC Honor Unit with Distinction and may nominate qualified candidates to the United States Service Academies. Fishburne hosts one of only four Summer JROTC programs in the nation that is accredited by US Army Cadet Command.
