tonight, marine staff sergeant logan cortez. he was ambushed. honored with a bronze star for his bravery. brooke baldwin with his story. >> and the next thing -- >> reporter: staff sergeant logan cortez is a martial arts instruction for the combat skills training skill. >> sometimes when you are in iraq and you are in the santd, are you not always shooting. sometimes are you in close combat, and you have to defend yourself. >> stop. >> reporter: in 2005, cortes was in the second battalion marines regiment. >> we were making sure that the weapons -- any insurgents in the city. >> reporter: just one week before returning home, while clearing the city, his team was ambushed. >> there was activity on one house, three insurgents, and we went to investigate it. >> reporter: second platoon arrived to the home first and found not three insurgents, but more than 30. >> reporter: i was about to set up the wall, when a couple of them came out and torched the house. so they started running, and there was explosion. and there was insurgents popping all over