Three of the nation’s top groups held firm atop the standings and defended their territory, while four out-of-state groups crashed the party in Wisconsin.
Millard West Music Lives Final Results
GC: Westside “Amazing Technicolor Show Choir” (BV/BC/BB)
1RU: Brandon “Brio”
2RU: Omaha South “The Ambassadors”
3RU: Millard North “Infinity”
4RU: Brandon “Bellas”
5RU: Aberdeen Central “Eagle Express”
ATSC is firmly in ‘last dance’ territory. The Doran Johnson-led outfit has now reeled off three consecutive wins to open Johnson’s final season at the helm. This season has all the hallmarks of a ‘vintage’ ATSC season, and the win count may rise to five or above by the time the season closes. It also evened the score on Brandon, who beat them at Heart of America Nashville in 2023. Brandon, for its part, beat everyone else besides Westside, and represented the South well. Omaha South saw its show grow from week to week, as The Ambassadors outpaced Millard North after losing to Infinity last week at Gretna. Brandon Bellas evened the score on Westside Simply Irresistible, as they won the womens division and made finals in an overall setting. Aberdeen Central extended its finals streak to 24 (not counting 2021) and beat Lewis Central, who beat them two weeks ago at Sioux Falls Jefferson.
Pleasant Hill Battle of the Best Final Results
GC: Neosho “Choraleers” (BV/BB)
1RU: Jenks “Trojanaires” (BC)
2RU: Carthage “Soundwave”
3RU: Platte County “Sound Express”
4RU: Harrisonville “Music Makers”
5RU: Oak Park “Oak Street Singers”
Neosho’s reign in western Missouri continues, as Choraleers took two captions and held off a Jenks program that is certainly on the rise for the overall win. Carthage seems to be just a step behind their southwest Missouri counterparts this year, but it is still Soundwave’s fifth consecutive finals appearance. Platte County debuted their show and is showing no signs of slowing down. Sound Express flew a bit under the radar last year, but they remain a dangerous group. Harrisonville is having one of its better seasons on record. Music Makers won 4A for the second consecutive week and made finals for the second straight time as well. Kip Mathew’s ensemble is doing a great job holding the standard for choirs not in the top division. Oak Park rounded out the finals field after also rounding out finals at Maryville two weeks ago. It’s been a nice rebound season so far for Oak Street, who only made finals twice during the entire 2024 season.
Sauk Prairie Music Show Choir Invitational
GC: Waconia “Power Company” (BV/BB)
1RU: Chesterton “Sandpipers” (BC)
2RU: Waubonsie Valley “Sound Check”
3RU: Dwight D. Eisenhower “Express”
4RU: De Pere “Jam Session”
5RU: New London ”Vision”
Despite many within Wisconsin’s boundaries who believed that an in-state group would be able to pull off the win here, it was not to be so. Waconia finally got the monkey off their back, nabbing PoCo’s first win of the year and extending its winning streak to five straight seasons. Chesterton rebounded mightily from a fifth-place showing last weekend at Milton, taking home Best Choreography. Waubonsie Valley was on a few people’s radars for finals, but their third place is a statement for a group that has seen some questions about its level of performance recently. Dwight D. Eisenhower was on very few radars for finals, but its Dia de los Muertos-themed show snuck into finals with the sixth-highest prelim score and shot up to fourth in finals. De Pere carried the banner for the in-state contingent, falling from third to prelims to fifth in finals. New London followed up a solid second at Tomah to start the season with a sixth here; this is arguably the hardest competition the group has made finals at in 15 years. The gap from fifth to tenth in prelims was a mere 4.3 points, typical for Sauk Prairie fields that are very competitive. Milton was the first group out of finals; they were followed by Tomah, Sparta, and Plymouth to round out the top ten prelim scores.
Wildcard: Johnston Showzam Final Results
GC: Linn-Mar “10th Street Edition” (BV/BC/BB)
1RU: Waukee Northwest “Eos”
2RU: Urbandale “Studio”
3RU: Linn-Mar “In Step”
4RU: Urbandale “Vitality”
5RU: Dowling Catholic “Dimensions”
Any questions about Linn-Mar have been answered. The entire program came out firing on all cylinders to begin the competitive season. 10SE swept and was first in both prelims and finals. In Step won the prep division and was fourth in finals. Hi-Style was first in the womens division. Until proven otherwise, any competition that Linn-Mar goes to is theirs to lose. Waukee Northwest jumped from third in prelims to second in finals, extending its top-two streak to 13 competitions. Urbandale brought a much improved version of its Home Alone show to Johnston, and was right there in the mix as well. Dowling Catholic was a surprise finalist for many. Dimensions beat out Norwalk and also Waukee Northwest Aurora for the last finals spot, no small feat.
As some choirs race to the halfway point in the season and others begin their season, there’s no shortage of stories to talk about. Those stories will be shared right here later this week.