Local marchers from Dubois County and beyond made their way to Lucas Oil Stadium this weekend, not to compete in Semi-State or State, but to compete amongst many in the Band of America competition this past Friday and Saturday. The Super-Regional preliminary competition was held on Friday, with the Forest Park Marching Rangers and the Jasper Marching Wildcats going head-to-head with the best bands of the Midwest. Although our local bands did not advance to the Finals of this competition, they still had to march their way to the ISSMA Semi-State competitions on Saturday.
The Jasper Marching Wildcats performed at Pike High School in Indianapolis, and out of the 20 bands to perform, Jasper secured their ticket to the ISSMA State Marching Band Competition for Class B.
The Forest Park Marching Rangers traveled to Franklin Community High School to compete in the Class D ISSMA Semi-State Competition, challenging local bands like the Springs Valley Blackhawk Brigade, The Pride of Paoli, Tell City Marching Marksmen, and the South Spencer Marching Rebels. Through all the sweat, there must have come some luck for these kids, as all of the five aforementioned bands are on their way to ISSMA Class D State Competition.
The mighty Southridge Marching Raiders traveled to Decatur Central High School on Saturday, competing against 19 other challengers. Despite a spectacular performance of “Remember The Ringmaster”, they were unable to snag a spot for the ISSMA State Competition. As posted to the Southridge Marching Raider Band Facebook Page, “The circus has come to an end” for the Marching Raiders.
The Indiana State School Music Association’s State Finals Performance is to be held this Saturday, October 28th, at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Class Performance Lineup is as follows:
Open Class B begins at 10AM EST, with gates opening at 9AM EST.
The Jasper Marching Wildcats perform at 10:15AM EST.
With Class B awards being held at 12:30PM EST.
Open Class D begins at 4:40PM EST.
The Pride of Paoli performs at 4:55PM EST.
The Springs Valley Blackhawk Brigade performs at 5:25PM EST.
The Tell City Marching Marksmen perform at 5:55PM EST.
The Forest Park Marching Rangers perform at 6:40PM EST.
The South Spencer Marching Rebels perform at 6:55PM EST.
With Class D awards at 7:10PM EST.
Tickets for the October 28th State competition are still available online via Ticketmaster.com. All tickets are General Admission, for $25 each.
Best of luck to all bands competing this weekend, and especially to our local bands: the Forest Park Marching Rangers and the Jasper Marching Wildcats!
We hope you come back State Champions, and please know that your community is proud of you no matter what score you place!
