This past weekend, both the winter color guard and drumline scored high at a competition in Springfield, Missouri. Guard took first in the state while, drumline placed fifth. There were 13 other schools in guard’s division, and many more performed throughout the entire day. Senior guard Heather Hight felt the 12 guard members connected well.

“We all just really bonded this year,” said Hight. “We practiced twice a week for a total of six hours, starting in early November.”

Bands director Mr. Nathan Griffin was impressed by the improvement.

“It’s great that guard went from third last year, to first this year,” said Mr. Griffin. “They definitely built a foundation.”

Junior captain Ryan Lakeman had similar success with drumline. He attributes this to many reasons.

“We had world-class [show] designers design our show,” said Lakeman. “We had a lot of people [from last year] coming back which helped us improve as a whole.”

Beyond competing at Springfield, drumline performed for the special olympics at St. Charles West High School.

“We did a cadence and performed our show,” said Mr. Griffin. “Before our performance, I told [drumline] that the audience would be the most supportive. [The audience was] clapping and it just fed the students.”

Following their accomplishments, prospects are strong next year for both guard and drumline.

“We really hope this becomes the norm as we continue to build,” said Mr. Griffin. “We hope to stay up there.”