Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands
He commanded the destroyer as a lieutenant commander during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands on 26 October 1942. Promoted to commander, he commanded Destroyer Division (DesDiv) 15, made up of the , , and , which, along with three ships of DesDiv 12 under Commander Frederick Moosbrugger, sank three Japanese destroyers and damaged one in the Battle of Vella Gulf, 6–7 August 1943.