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GRAFENWÖHR — The 21st Theater Sustainment Command selected its top squad following the 2026 Best Squad Competition at the Grafenwöhr Training Area, April 19 to 24, identifying the team that will represent the command at the upcoming U.S. Army Europe and Africa Best Squad Competition.
The winning squad, representing the 7th Engineer Brigade, included 1st Lt. Benjamin Flaherty, Staff Sgt. Jonah Mang, Sgt. Marcus Robinson, Spc. Pedro Cardona, Spc. Matthew Falone and Pfc. Cleopheus Lane.
The squad emerged from a field of competitors representing the 7th Mission Support Command, 21st Special Troops Battalion, 16th Sustainment Brigade, 18th Military Police Brigade and 30th Medical Brigade after completing a week of physically and mentally demanding events designed to replicate conditions Soldiers may face in large-scale combat operations.
“This competition is about identifying squads that can operate and win in a contested environment,” said Maj. Gen. Michael B. Lalor, the command’s commanding general. “The team moving forward has proven it can meet the standard and represent this command at the next level.”
Over six days, squads completed events such as the Army Fitness Test, land navigation, weapons qualification, obstacle and confidence courses, and a 12-mile ruck march, often under limited rest and sustained physical stress across extended training days. Each event tested the fundamentals Soldiers are expected to perform in any environment.
Sgt. Maj. Mitchell Ledet, the command’s G-3 sergeant major and noncommissioned officer in charge of the competition, said the event was designed to reflect real-world operational demands.
“We built the events to reflect real-world requirements,” Ledet said. “Everything was aligned with higher headquarters guidance and focused on tasks Soldiers are expected to perform in large-scale combat operations.” He said coordination across the formation was critical to executing the competition.
“One of the biggest improvements was making sure every brigade had a voice in the process,” Ledet said. “That shared ownership helped us build a stronger, more effective competition.”
Command Sgt. Maj. Denise M. Malave, the command’s senior enlisted leader, said the competition reinforces standards across the formation and develops leaders.
“We are looking for disciplined teams that are consistent under pressure,” Malave said. “That comes down to adherence to standards, accountability and competence in the fundamentals.”
“This places NCOs in positions where they have to lead in real time, make decisions and be accountable for outcomes,” she said. “It reinforces that NCOs enforce standards, develop Soldiers and drive readiness.”
Malave said consistency is what separates top-performing squads.
“A good squad can complete the task,” she said. “The best squad completes the task to standard, under pressure, every time, while making everyone around them better.”
For the winning squad, success came down to discipline, preparation and trust within the team.
“We focused on the fundamentals and building mental toughness,” said Staff Sgt. Jonah Mang, squad leader for the winning squad. “We did a lot of conditioning and running, and it paid off.”
“The radio was the most challenging part,” Mang added. “We had to work through issues and keep going.” Junior Soldiers said teamwork made the difference throughout the competition.
“We hold each other accountable, but we don’t take it personally,” said Spc. Matthew Falone, assigned to the 7th Engineer Brigade. “We take the correction and move on to the next task.”
“The rough terrain course was the toughest,” Falone said. “It was constant hills, and there was no place to stop. You just had to keep moving.”
“We didn’t know what to expect going into the rough terrain course,” he added. “We had to adapt as we went.” Lane evaluators assessed each squad’s ability to execute tasks to standard under pressure.
Staff Sgt. Sammy Rubio, a lane evaluator and cadre member, said consistency across conditions and across the team set the top performers apart.
“We are looking for squads that can perform consistently in any condition,” Rubio said. “The winning squad showed that from start to finish.”
“The top squads were consistent across the board,” he added. “You could tell they had trained together, while other teams had stronger individuals but less consistency.”
Six Soldiers from the second-place 16th Sustainment Brigade team will join the selected squad to represent the command at the U.S. Army Europe and Africa-level competition in August, where they will compete against top squads from across the theater.
“This is about building teams that can operate anywhere in the theater,” Lalor said. “The squad moving forward will represent the command against the best in Europe and Africa.”
