Saturday, October 7, the Walton HS Marching Braves traveled to Andalusia HS for the A-Town Invitational - a longstanding competition bringing some of the best bands from South Alabama and the Panhandle of Florida. The Braves were set to compete in class 1A for hopes to not only receive Superior Ratings, but aiming for Best in Class awards for each caption judged, and overall 1st place in their classification.
The competition was almost canceled due to Hurricane Nate which was still a few hours away in the Gulf but set to hit early that evening in the Mobile and Pensacola area. The competition went on as scheduled, despite a few bands having to back out who were close to the storms path.
The Braves arrived at Andalusia High School with intentions of performing earlier than originally scheduled so they could travel back to Walton HS if the weather started to worsen throughout the day. The band went into warmup at 12:00 and then took the field at 12:35 that afternoon. As usual, the band put on a great show with new additions visually and musically to help add to their show, RAGE. Upon finishing their show the Braves loaded their equipment and filed into the stands to watch upcoming bands while the weather stayed clear.
Finally, as the last band finished the awards were given out with the Braves not only receiving Superior Ratings, for the second time this season, but also winning Best in Class Drum Major, Color Guard, Percussion, and Band! The Braves were not only ranked 1st in their class, but were awarded the Overall Grand Champion of the entire competition! This award was given to the band who had the highest combined scores of Band, Percussion, and Guard. This type of achievement is a huge accomplishment for this program and its students. The band is set to compete again on Saturday October 14th at Rip Hewes Stadium in Dothan Alabama for the Southern Showcase and will perform at 12:45 in class 1A. Great job Braves and Good luck!
Submitted by Chad Robbins