2018 St. Louis Super Regional


Prelims Results

(View full prelims recap here)

Class A
1. University H.S., IL
2. Monticello H.S., IL
3. Berryhill H.S., OK

Music: University H.S., IL
Visual: University H.S., IL
GE: University H.S., IL

Class AA
1. Marian Catholic H.S., IL
2. Morton H.S., IL
3. Grain Valley H.S., MO

Music: Morton H.S., IL
Visual: Morton H.S., IL
GE: Marian Catholic H.S., IL

Class AAA
1. Dripping Springs H.S., TX
2. Clovis H.S., NM
3. Blue Springs South H.S., MO

Music: Clovis H.S., NM
Visual: Dripping Springs H.S., TX
GE: Dripping Springs H.S., TX

Class AAAA
1. Broken Arrow H.S., OK
2. Blue Springs H.S., MO
3. Lincoln-Way H.S., IL

Music: Broken Arrow H.S., OK
Visual: Broken Arrow H.S., OK
GE: Broken Arrow H.S., OK

Finals Results

(View full finals recap here)

1. (92.350) Broken Arrow H.S., OK
2. (91.900) Blue Springs H.S., MO
3. (88.600) Jenks H.S., OK
4. (87.825) Lincoln-Way H.S., IL
5. (87.600) O'Fallon Township H.S., IL
6. (86.600) Dripping Springs H.S., TX
7. (85.600) Marian Catholic H.S., IL
8. (83.850) Clovis H.S., NM
9. (83.325) Weiss H.S., TX
10. (83.075) Owasso H.S., OK
11. (82.375) Morton H.S., IL
12. (82.100) Blue Springs South, MO
13. (81.375) Grain Valley H.S., MO
14. (81.250) Bentonville H.S., AR

Music: Broken Arrow H.S., OK
Visual: Broken Arrow H.S., OK
GE: Blue Springs H.S., MO
and Broken Arrow H.S., OK

Returning 2017 Finalists (9)
1. Broken Arrow H.S., OK
2. Blue Springs H.S., MO
3. O'Fallon Township H.S., IL
4. Owasso H.S., OK
5. Grain Valley H.S., MO
7. Jenks H.S., OK
10. Morton H.S., IL
11. Bentonville H.S., AR
12. Rockwood Summit H.S., MO

Previous Champions
2017: Broken Arrow H.S., OK
2016: Broken Arrow H.S., OK
2015: Broken Arrow H.S., OK
2014: Broken Arrow H.S., OK
2013: Broken Arrow H.S., OK
2012: Owasso H.S., OK
2011: Broken Arrow H.S., OK

States Represented (15)
Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin.

The 2018 St. Louis Super Regional will be held Oct. 26–27 at The Dome at America's Center. In 2017, Broken Arrow swept captions and won yet another super regional champion title.

Our Thoughts
Nearly 74 bands from 15 different states will descend on St. Louis to battle for just 14 spots in finals competitions. With only nine of last year’s finalists returning, there are plenty of open spots in finals for new groups and long-time challengers.

District-mates Blue Springs and Blue Springs South will headline the third block of prelims on Friday. Blue Springs comes to St. Louis having already competed at a super regional this season. Last weekend in Indianapolis, the band finished third behind Carmel and Avon, winning the visual caption in prelims. While 3:30 may seem like a good time for an afternoon nap, you will not want to miss this show. They’ve seamless woven together a musical and visual program that will keep you on the edge of your seat the entire show, not to mention their stunning vocalist. For South, this is their first super regional of the season and could be their second consecutive super regional finals appearance. The band made history last season in Indianapolis when they made finals at a super regional for the first time ever.

Missouri bands make up the bulk of the last block Friday with Grain Valley, Fort Zumwalt North, Rockwood Summit, and Kickapoo. Each of these bands has made finals at least once in the last five years, and with such tight competition scheduled so close to each other, we’ll get as fair of a read as possible from the judges on who’s in and who’s out of finals.

Bellevue West performs right after the Missouri contingent and is one band we are very eager to see. So far this season, their only performance outside Nebraska was at the Golden Regiment Invitational. At that competition, they finished second behind Grain Valley, which keeps them easily in our picks for finals.

O'Fallon Township performs at the Clarksville Regional on Sept. 29, 2018, at Austin Peay State University. // Photo courtesy of Greater St. Louis Marching.
Perhaps the longest and shortest distances from St. Louis, Dripping Springs and O’Fallon Township will conclude Friday’s prelims with their back-to-back performances. All the way from Texas, Drip will be looking to build on their regional championship last year in McAllen. After Waco was rained out two weeks ago, this super regional will now be Dripping Springs BOA premiere. O’Fallon also has a recent regional victory in their pocket, winning the Clarksville Regional earlier this season. While it may be tempting to head home early since you know you’ll be seeing both the bands in finals the next night, you’ll regret missing any chance you get to see O’Fallon’s show this year.

Saturday morning starts early, but there are several great bands you need to see. Returning finalist Morton performs at 8 a.m. followed by New Mexico’s Clovis. Then Bentonville and Owasso wrap up the block by 9:30. These latter two bands finished back-to-back at Union’s Renegade Review competition earlier this year and could find themselves in a similar position here in St. Louis. The only data we have on Clovis is from their performances in West Texas, Utah, and California. They have a consistent record of making finals at these events, typically even finishing in the top half of finals. However, we just really aren’t entirely sure how those results will translate to St. Louis.

The second block on Saturday features Lincoln-Way and Marian Catholic, two bands that along with O’Fallon will be looking for a rematch of one of last weekend’s competitions. These three bands competed at Illinois State University last Saturday with Lincoln-way earning the top spot. We expect the rankings of the three groups to shake up a bit here in St. Louis, but all three could easily be among the bands performing in finals Saturday night. Walton also performs in this middle block and will be an interesting band to keep your eye on. Earlier this season they missed finals at the Jacksonville Regional, but have been hard at work ever since and could perhaps pull off a surprise finals appearance.

Jenks might be the most underrated band going into this super regional. Earlier this season, they beat Union at the Owasso Invitational. Then just last weekend, they finished second behind Broken Arrow at the Oklahoma state championships, tying BA for the visual caption in prelims. A strong finish here in St. Louis is just what they need as they prepare to travel to Grand Nats in a few weeks.

Two more groups to pay attention to during this block are Blue Valley West and Weiss. Blue Valley West finished in the first spot out of finals last year, just 0.15 away from finals. This could be the year they’re able to catch that gap and be in finals. Weiss is the newest Pflugerville ISD school in Texas, opening just last with only freshman and sophomores. The school now has up to juniors this year and has been performing well in the very competitive Austin area. While they may not be able to make finals this year, a top three placement in class is not out of the question.

Broken Arrow performs at the St. Louis Super Regional on Oct. 21, 2017, at The Dome at America's Center. // Photo by Jeremiah Wooten
Finally, Broken Arrow is expected to claim their sixth consecutive St. Louis title since taking a year off from the event in 2012. The band performs last in prelims competition at 3:15 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, and we expect the stands to be packed. This year’s show is a wonderful Wes Cartwright-take on a patriotic show that you will not want to miss.

With so many new groups and many returning groups, this will be a tough super regional to make finals. Our predictions are below, but you’ll notice we mentioned over 20 bands in this article that we would not be surprised to see in finals.

Predictions
1. Broken Arrow H.S., OK
2. Blue Springs H.S., MO
3. O'Fallon Township H.S., IL
4. Jenks H.S., OK
5. Marian Catholic H.S., IL
6. Owasso H.S., OK
7. Dripping Springs H.S., TX
8. Grain Valley H.S., MO
9. Bellevue West H.S., NE
10. Lincoln-Way H.S., IL
11. Bentonville H.S., AR
12. Lafayette H.S., LA
13. Blue Springs South H.S., MO
14. Clovis H.S., NM

Adjudication Panel
Music: Carl Bly, Mark Calima, Wayne Downey, Travis Moddison, Dave Morrison, Kim Shuttlesworth, Mark Stone, and Greg Williams.
Visual: Scott Beck, Tim Landess, Kyle Miller, Tim Ochran, Adam Sage, and Michael Stone.
Chief: Gary Markham.