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8th Time is a Charm--High School Band Again Rates Superior at Regional Marching Contest
For the 8th year in a row, Sperry High School Band has brought home a Superior rating from the Regional Marching Contest. On Tuesday, October 17, the band traveled to Skiatook for the regional event. "Up to this point, all the Superior ratings and honors we have received have been great," Mrs. Alana King, High School Band Director said. "But this contest is the one that determines if we have a shot at the Sweepstakes Award in May. At this contest we have to show the judges our awards so far have not been a fluke."
Marching onto the football field for Senior Night two evenings later marked to the end of the competitive marching season. "the season couldn't have ended better," Assistant High School Band Director Makayla West said. "I am very happy to be a part of the Sperry Pirate team."
Three judges scored each band's performance, and Sperry received a Superior rating from each. The color guard also performed, and kept their high status this year, earning a Superior rating for their performance as well. "I was not only impressed with the color guard's performance itself," Sperry Superintendent Dr. Brian Beagles said, "but was surprised to see them working through a new routine. I expected to see them perform one of the routines they had done at our football games so it wouldn't be so challenging. But they worked through it wonderfully."
On Saturday, October 7, the band attended the Blue Grey Marching Classic in Glenpool. That contest was for points, which resulted in rankings. The result for the Pirate musicologists was the award for the highest ranking for color guard and percussion.
A total of 13 schools participated in the competition on Saturday. There were three judges, one for music and drumline, one for general effect and drum major, and one for marching and color guard. Sperry’s color guard took first place, as did the drumline. They also placed first in the best overall category. With these three first place earnings in their subgroups, it was no surprise that Sperry also brought home the honor of best overall band for all Class 3A in the 3A sweepstakes.
The band and color guard had earned a rating of Superior just days before their trip to Glenpool. On Thursday, October 5, Sperry’s high rating band and color guard had traveled to Verdigris for the Big Red Sound-Off, and the 3 judges all awarded Sperry a Superior rating.
In September, the year’s competitions began as part of the Oklahoma City State Fair activities. Sperry High School Band and Color Guard traveled to the state’s capital to compete with some of the best of the school bands on the western side of the state. The color guard and percussion section set the standard for Sperry when they both earned honors at the Oklahoma City State Fair Parade. There were 14 Class 3A school bands and color guards at this competition. Sperry's band "came out looking pretty good," noted Mrs. King.
Sperry's color guard took first place for the second year in a row at the Oklahoma City State Fair. The percussion section placed third overall.
"The kids were very well prepared for all of these competitions,” said Mrs. King of these events, who is in her third year of guiding the Sperry bands. "Overall, we are doing very well."
Nathan Torix is a senior drummer in the Sperry High School Band. The remainder of the percussion section consists of juniors Alex Martin and Donald Garrison, freshman Travis Swalley and eighth grader Sadie Smith. "There were a lot of good bands there and we played pretty well," Nathan said. "We did not do as well as we could have but it was a good performance. The two bands who finished ahead of us have percussion coaches."
Reflecting on the success of the band at these competitions, Mrs. King noted, "Several of the bands have so many players that our band just can't produce the volume of music at competitions like this one, but out on the field, this band makes its mark. And now our band is bigger than it has been in past years, and judging by the interest in the elementary and middle school students, we will continue to grow.”
"We can already perform a wider variety of numbers than we have in the past," she said, “ and we will continue to work hard to continue to add more.”
The band plays at all Sperry High School football games, performing some of the routines that have earned them their many honors this year, and some that they hope will result in continued high ratings as they complete their season. The high school band has two more contests in their competitive marching season. They will attend the Cleveland Marching Contest on Oct. 14, followed by the OSSAA regional contest is at Victory Christian Oct. 17.
