These rankings are a collection of HRSC's Indiana voters' four-member blind ballot designed to come to a consensus ranking. The panel ranks 30 groups across four divisions - large and small mixed and large and small single-gender. This is the large single-gender ranking. March is upon us - it's now the stretch run of the season for each and every group.
1. Fishers Sound (4 first-place votes, +1)
Sounds opens up strong at Franklin Central (Nathan Ensley)
Fishers Sound may be the best single-gender group in the country, and this past week helped their case. There are many amazing groups, but Fishers Sound in 2024 is in a league of its own. Very few groups can have vocals that leave audiences in awe throughout their show. They use all sorts of vocal ranges and styles paired with clean and crisp choreography. The constant motion and style stop only for a ballad filled with depth and emotion only achieved by the somewhat unlikely pair of a French ballad and an Olivia Rodrigo heartbreak piece. After the audience has been immersed in all the sound that Sound can make, they hit the gas till the end of the set, displaying the power of their group. Fishers Sound is electric and one of the best shows to grace the stage all season. They took back the top spot by defeating Carmel and Center Grove this past week, which completes a full sweep of the Power Five for the year, all done without dropping a caption. Fishers Sound looks to be the class of the field for this season, and with this level of control, that dominance may continue for years to come.
2. Center Grove Debtones (+1)
Debtones closes out their show at FC (Nathan Ensley)
Debtones is number one in almost any other circuit in the country. They looked fantastic on Saturday, filling the auditorium with their clear-cut tone and powerful, rapid movements. They are the model of what Center Grove is known for: they just exude the highest level of class. While Sound System walked away with the win this weekend, Debtones was just as good if not better. The single-gender competition this weekend was very intense and displayed a level of talent far beyond what many get to experience in their time in the circuit. Debtones will go out and have an opportunity to assemble one of the best national resumes this year. With wins possible (while perhaps not likely) at Wheaton Warrenville South, Noblesville, and Show Choir Nationals, they can further boost their national resume.
3. Carmel Accents (-2)
Carmel makes some art at Pike (Nathan Ensley)
Carmel Accents joined the top two at Franklin Central and looked great on Saturday night. Being on that podium at all is a massive accomplishment of its own with all four finalists in the top five of these rankings. The ability to compete at FC was worth celebrating; they truly went out and looked like a work of art. They will try to rebound next week at Lafayette Jefferson where they will have a less insane competition to try and restart the win streak they lost.
4. Franklin Central High Voltage (No change)
High Voltage shows out early (Nathan Ensley)
Franklin Central was host to the top-five showdown last Saturday -thank you for taking the week off to allow for such an amazing opportunity for show choir viewers. Now, they have a week off before trying to prove their national viability at Heart Of America Orlando. For now, they get to keep working and make their set better before they begin to close out a strong season.
5. Brownsburg Starlight Voices (+1)
Brownsburg is Livin' La Vida Loca (Nathan Ensley)
Brownsburg takes a massive step forward with their I Love Lucy set, and though they placed 4th at Franklin Central, they looked extremely strong in one of the most stacked fields in recent memory. They look to be pushed forward by Joe Sato and Cecily Pedregon, whose teamwork on this set brings out the best in Starlight. They will have a tough road ahead, facing the number one and two ranked groups on this list before year's end. Regardless, they have put the show choir world on notice with their meteoric rise in the last two weeks.
6. Avon Attraction (-1)
Avon feeling very royal at Plainfield (Nathan Ensley)
Avon has completed their single-gender season and has just FAME Orlando left on their schedule which has no dedicated single-gender division. Thus, their single gender division run has concluded, and they have emerged as one of the most solid groups in Indiana. They have won two grand championships this year and looked strong throughout the season. The only group that they didn’t take at least a caption off of was Fishers Sound. Their Bridgerton-themed set used impressive costuming paired with fun choreography and strong vocals. Hopefully, they will find a way to make noise at FAME and finish out an extremely strong season.
7. Plainfield Femmes Fatales (NC)
Plainfield at Plainfield (Nathan Ensley)
Plainfield has taken a long break since their last competition at Ben Davis, but they will look to continue their win streak from the beginning of the season. Their first three competitions come without a blemish, winning with every caption. No matter what happens in the next few weeks, their season has been extremely successful. Their test next week at Avon will be to defeat both Spotlight and Sound, who have been ridiculously strong this season. If they can go out and prove that they belong with that top-tier competition, they will skyrocket up this list. They've had a long time to prepare for this battle, so watch out for Plainfield this weekend in both categories.
8. Zionsville Choralaires (NC)
Zionsville in their Taylor Swift Era (Nathan Ensley)
Zionsville has had a tough season so far. They have faced several rising groups to begin their season. Now with time, those losses don’t appear so bad because those groups have been on meteoric rises this season. They have a great shot at their first grand championship this weekend at South Dearborn and will face all kinds of competition at Wheaton Warrenville South. Just a finals appearance at Wheaton will prove that this group is still one to watch out for in the Midwest. For now, their Taylor Swift show is fun, and it will be even more fun if it translated to a victory.
9. Noblesville New Dimension (+1)
Noblesville sings their hearts out (Nathan Ensley)
Noblesville took their first Grand Championship this past weekend over several stellar groups and has an off-weekend before two massive competitions at Brownsburg and Nationals. That means this week will be the prep for those challenges ahead. They have the benefit of performing more than almost any other single-gender group thus far, which could aid them when it comes down to this competitive stretch.
10. North Central Descants (-1)
Descants looks to staying home (Nathan Ensley)
Descants are a very solid tenth, they just have to contend with an extremely competitive top ten in general. They will look to have solid weekends at Lafayette Jeff and Lawrence Central, where they will face some top competition. Their way back to a Grand Championship is coming, it just likely will take some more time. They have a great opportunity to make noise in Ohio at Marysville, but until then, they’ll have to make the most of the hyper-competitive Indy scene and keep getting better week in and week out.
11. Lawrence North Bella Bravada (NC)
Bella Bravada showing out at Plainfield (Nathan Ensley)
The Bellas retain their eleventh-place rank from last week with a first runner-up finish at Huntington North on Saturday. This group has been putting up some excellent performances this season, and that second place is their best result since 2021. Even more notably, they made a four-group final in a very competitive Pike treble division. This week, they will face many groups in the top ten, making this a great moment to cement themselves as a top contender in the Indiana scene and one to watch out for in the future.
12. Carroll Select Sound (NC)
Carroll's season started the same way that it did last year, with two second places. After that, it has been a different story than 2023. They have not placed in their last two competitions, but that is in many ways because they have been taking on tougher competition this season than in the past. Whatever happens, they are set up well to make a run all the way to their final competition out of state.
13. Lawrence Central Sweets (NC)
Lawrence Central has faced tough competition in the Indianapolis circut and will look to make an impression at another tough competition, Avon. While it's been an overall tough year for the group, they still have a lot to celebrate as they achieved a podium at Ben Davis and have a good opportunity for even more at Avon and ISSMA state.
14. Franklin Community Sensation (+1)
Franklin Community performing their ballad (Nathan Ensley)
Franklin Community still has over half their season left to take on, not including the possibility of ISSMA. Their lovely vocals and fun theme on phobias has pushed this group into the top fifteen, and they can push themselves even further this weekend against some great competition at South Dearborn. Despite another very challenging competition at Brownsburg coming up, this group certainly has the potential to make some noise.
15. Chesterton Drifters (-1)
Chesterton has two grand championships under their belt, similar to their mixed group. They can even improve their group’s reputation if they can capture more top places against some of the best Illinois and northern Indiana has to offer. While they do not see most of the groups on this list throughout the season, Drifters do well enough in other states to continue appearing on this list.
Receiving Votes: Homestead "Elite", Decatur Central "Expressions", Ben Davis "Sounds"
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