On Saturday, September 28, the Oakmont Overlook Marching Spartans competed in their first outdoor competition this year at North Andover High School. This day was full of jitters and excitement as this was the Marching Band’s first time ever competing in Division 5, which contains the biggest bands in New England. Even though this past fall the Marching Spartans won 1st place in Division 3, they are now competing against the reigning Division 4 (Oliver Ames) and Division 5 (Wakefield) champions. 

The bus ride was full of encouragement and music to get everyone pumped up for the performance ahead and once they had arrived at North Andover High School, the Marching Spartans had their game faces on. After everyone had warmed up and participated in their routine hype circles, it was time to put the show out for the audience to finally appreciate in its full form. The Marching Spartans finally took the field for their first outdoor performance of War of the Worlds. 

The audience was amazing and had great reactions. The biggest reaction was for the tripods, which are 7-foot-tall props that are carried around the field by senior Ash Nolan, junior Viktor Stasiak, and senior Persephone Panageotes. As soon as the radio prop turned around to reveal these outstanding aliens, the audience went wild. 

After the performance, it was time to reveal the scores. The Marching Spartans happily went home with a third-place trophy and a final score of 79.56, only 0.01 points away from second place. Amazing job to everyone that performed and good luck on your next performance!