The annual "blood battle" between the various University of Illinois ROTC/Military Services was held on Friday, February 11. The drive is held with their Force, Army, Marines and Navy to see which group of cadets can produce the most blood donors.

The winning service proudly displays a traveling trophy for one year. The Army ROTC proudly held the title for several years, but lost it to the Naval ROTC two years ago. This year, the Army ROTC re-captured their title by producing the most blood donors and receiving 58 points. The other services scores are as follows: The Marines and Navy scored 34 points with the Air Force coming in with 45 points. Although the Air Force was not the big winner, they do deserve special recognition for a significant increase in participation compared to past years.

The winner of the competition is announced at the All-Service Military Ball, with the losing services joining in to sing the winning service’s song. A special thank you goes to John Yoo for being the sole blood drive coordinator for this year’s event and thanks to everyone who helped make this event a success. A total of 57 units of blood was collected, which gave a tremendous boost to our community’s blood supply.