Cpl. Moran said:
On the second round of an April EP2 Platoon Drill, 2Lt. Mellinger was tasked with holding the eastern side of Al Khora. After listening to callouts of the enemy’s advance, he positioned himself within a multi-story building with eyes on the objective. As the enemy chewed through our defenses and made their assault, 2Lt. Mellinger held his ground. The enemy quickly surrounded his compound, but 2Lt. Mellinger did not back down. Using his pristine rifle skills, he was able to quickly eliminate 7, then 8, and then 10 enemies. Using hand grenades, he was able to displace the attacking forces and soften their advance. 2Lt. Mellinger quickly tracked down the 2 remaining attackers and promptly killed them. I have no doubt that his superb rifle skills and positioning single handedly won us that round.
