After competing at the USBands competition in Webster, Texas, the band placed second in prelims, and later placed third in finals, ending with a final score of 82.200.
“I think that’s a good place for us to be, since there were some really good groups there, but I think we represent ourselves really well,” Assistant Director Hayden Drew said. “We had a run that went just the way we needed it to, just the way we wanted it to.”
Although feelings about individual performances may vary, many students think highly of how they performed at the competition, whether they were playing something small, with a group, or something individually.
“That was my first time doing my solo at a contest, and I was nervous out of my mind,” senior Ashlee Juarez said. “But Ian, my solo partner, and I did really well, and I hit all of my dots, even if there weren’t that many.”
While students are proud of how they played and performed at the competition, some still believe that they have room for improvement.
“I could definitely improve on my performance quality,” senior Corbin Jones said. “Not that it’s bad, but there’s always more that you can give.”
After hearing the news that they had placed third, many, if not all members of the band, were overjoyed.
“I was ecstatic,” Granado said. “Not only from my own personal feelings, but being right next to the band when that happened, feeling the energy rise up from all of the students as a whole was more exciting for me, and I was more than happy that they felt more than accomplished, and that they did everything they could to get themselves to that point.”
Some directors find the placement particularly impressive due to the fact that the band’s show is not completely developed.
“A lot of the bands that we competed against already had their full show on the field, but ours is uncharacteristically difficult,” Drew said. “As you guys, the people who are in it, it’s hard, we’ve got a lot of choreography to add, props to add, we’ve got a lot of things to add that will make our show better and better. A lot of other bands don’t have that, they’re already done.”
As another competition approaches, the band prepares to give their best once again.
“We just need to go out there and do our jobs,” Assistant Director Andrew Granado said. “Whether it’s rehearsal, whether it’s a football game, whether it’s a competition, your same job is to go out and perform to the best of your abilities. I think we have a very high chance to succeed in our next competition, as long as we bring that same energy from the last competition.”
