| Busy
Weekend prepares Brigade for Regional
By: Jermaine Williams
info@blackhawkbrigade.com
SV Brigade Media Relations
SALEM, Indiana – The Springs Valley
Blackhawk Brigade concluded the final regular season weekend
with a full load of performances, including one of the best
shows of the season at the Salem Invitational on Saturday
night. The Brigade brought home third place and the award
for best drum majors.
The Brigade completed a full weekend of
community performances. "We had a very busy weekend,”
said Director of Bands at Springs Valley Luke Aylsworth.
“We performed at the football game Friday night and
then turned around and had three performances within a twenty-four
hour period. The great aspect of those performances is that
we performed our best show on the very last performance.”
The Brigade had a tall task on hand Saturday
night, competing with bands from Class B and C. “When
you compete with Floyd Central, Scottsburg, Paoli and Corydon,
you know you have developed a good program,” said
Aylsworth when talking about competing with larger bands.
“Those are some very storied music programs in southern
Indiana. We were honored to be classified in that level
of band.” Springs Valley has not always been able
to perform at such a level. Back in 2002, the Brigade performed
in one of the smaller classes at Salem. “A few years
ago we were in the smallest class and barely able to compete.
We have certainly come a long way,” added Aylsworth.
The Brigade was able to finish above Scottsburg,
who finished sixth last season at State Finals in class
C, and Corydon Central, who competes for a state finals
spot each year in class C. Ayslworth said that, “The
students were very motivated to have a good show. They knew
we were in the largest class and wanted to see if we could
compete with those big schools.”
Along with the third place finish for the
Brigade, Kaiti Wilson and Elise McElroy won the award for
best drum majors. “It has been scary being a first
year drum major,” stated the junior Wilson. “Elise
and I have grown up a lot this season and winning this award
boosted our confidence in ourselves.” When talking
about competing in the large class, the sophomore McEloy
said, “It is very exciting to see the band draw together
and rise to the challenge. All of our hard work is beginning
to pay off.”
This weekend, Springs Valley will compete
in the ISSMA South Regional contest at Memorial Stadium
on the campus of Indiana State University in Terre Haute,
Indiana. The contest gets underway a 12:00 noon with the
Brigade taking the field at 2:23pm. To qualify for state
finals, the Brigade must finish in the top five of their
class. Sixteen other bands will join Springs Valley in Class
D competition for a full day. Should the Brigade make it
to state finals, it would be the second time in as many
years and the first time they have made back-to-back appearances
since they compiled a five year run from 1990-1994. If you
cannot attend on Saturday, check the Brigade website at
www.blackhawkbrigade.com for up-to-the minute updates on
Saturday’s contest.
NOTE: Article published in the Springs Valley Herald and
Bedford Times-Mail.
Contest Results can be found at:
Indiana
Marching.com and/or
Simply
Instrumental.com
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