MCRD/ERR PARRIS ISLAND, S.C. -- The Depot Rifle/Pistol Team took on the team from MCAS Cherry Point, N.C., in a mock shooting match at WFTBn.'s Pusan Range Feb. 20. The teams competed with pistols and rifles to hone shooting skills and ready themselves for the pressure of competition in the upcoming nationals at Camp Lejeune, N.C. The three-week national competition will feature an estimated 300 competitors on six different teams."Everybody's ultimate goal is to medal," said Sgt. Jordan Kramp, Depot Rifle/Pistol Team member. Medalling means familiarizing one's body and mind to the pressures that comes hand-in-hand with competition. That familiarization comes through mock competitions and a ritualistic style of practice.Everything is done step by step just as it is done in competition, said Chief Warrant Officer Anthony Carbonari, Cherry Point's team captain and coach. "I will actually [imitate] plotting my shots and putting a round in. I even wait until the target shows before I send the bolt home. I preach to [the team] to write down all of the steps, and make sure they do those exact steps every single shot." Following a specific process is one way of getting familiar with the competitive mindset, but Kramp prefers the challenge of overcoming the stress."The cross training is a good experience, because it gives us some match pressure," said Kramp. "Especially for the guys who have never shot in a match. You put yourself in a match environment and your body reacts differently." According to Kramp, the definition of match pressure is the expectations one has on oneself and by his peers to perform well in a match."Everybody is trying to improve how they shoot in an actual match environment," said Kramp. "It is very common to shoot five to 10 points lower in a match than you will in a practice."That decline is a riddle that the competitors hope to solve through mock competitions like this one. Simulated contests bring about the pressure of a competition, like atmosphere, for shooters to get a first-hand look at how they will do when they get to the nationals."My goal is to be a better shooter," said Cpl. Kyle J. Moschetto, Cherry Point Rifle/Pistol Team member. "I want to come out here and get competitive. It really gets you into the mindset of how you are going to do in competition."Moschetto has high expectations not only for himself, but for any Marine he can lend his experience to."[I think] that I can help those Marines that can't really shoot down range and that have a lot of trouble putting rounds on the paper," he said. "I am from a small unit, and if a Marine is having problems and he goes to [Indoor Simulated Marksmanship Training,] he will have someone there to talk to. Although, if you have someone in your unit who knows what they're doing, and can get to them on a more personal level, that might help them a little bit more than a coach telling them what to do."Leading by example and through experience is what has put these teams at the top of their field, and that fact is not lost on anyone."As far as coaching and telling [the new shooters] what to expect and how to do this or how to do that, it is up to everybody that shot last year," said Kramp. "[We have to] act like a coach for those who are shooting for the first time."Bringing Marines together to improve Marines, the establishment of camaraderie and the challenges of match shooting are what this competition was all about, said Carbonari. "[There are some] bragging rights that come along with winning," said Kramp. "Nevertheless, we are all on the same team and we need to go off to division thinking we have rendered something from this test."Depot and Cherry Point, N.C., teams will compete again at the national competition at Camp Lejeune, N.C. March 13- April 9.