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By Annie Myers

Before the performance, senior Collin Petigna warms up his saxophone. Going into the competition, Petigna said that he felt "a little worried because I didn’t think we were ready enough for it," but thought that the band sounded good as a whole. On Wednesday, Oct. 5, the Marching Jaguars performed at the Emporia State marching festival.

On Wednesday, Oct. 5, the Blue Band competed in a marching festival at Emporia State University. Having scored in the 77th percentile  overall, the band received a two rating. There were multiple sub-categories in which the scores were compiled, which all received ratings as follows: music received a one, marching received a two, color guard received a two and drumline received a one. The highest rating possible is a one and the lowest is a five.

After arriving at the venue, the band did their warm-up and then lined up at the gate. During the festival, the band performed a show called “Brass Attack” that included many songs. Included songs were, “Attitude Dance” by Tower of Power and “Get It On” by Chase.

The feelings of band members before the competition were mixed. Sophomore Eric Niewohner felt apprehensive, as this was his first time competing at Emporia State.

“I was more nervous before the competition, but after … I felt a lot better about how we performed as a band,” Niewohner said.

On the other hand, senior Parker Billings, a returning band member, was confident.

“Before [the competition] I felt well prepared, and after, I felt we did the best we could,”

Although many band members were content with the outcome, sophomore color guard member Veronica Dervin was disappointed.

“I was kinda mad [about the scores] because we were so close, then we didn’t get it,” Dervin said, “I think it just goes to show that we can get better and can always improve.”

The next band competition will be the Central States Marching Festival on Saturday, Oct. 15 at Kansas State University.