On to state: Fort Mill, Nation Ford bands

FORT MILL --?

After a successful afternoon at the Upper State competition on Saturday, both Fort Mill and Nation Ford marching bands advanced to the State competition scheduled for Saturday.

Nation Ford finished third in the Class 4AUpper State competition, held at Boiling Springs High School. This is the first year the band has competed in 4A.

Fort Mill returned to 4A for the first time in three years. They finished fourth place at Upper State. The last time the Fort Mill band competed in 4A, 2009, it took home the state title.

Among the top bands were several others from York County. Northwestern and Rock Hill high schools were awarded first and second place, respectively. Clover High School finished in sixth place.

Fort Mill and Nation Ford will perform in the State competition at Spring Valley High School on Saturday. Fort Mill performs at 7:30 p.m. Nation Ford performs at 8 p.m. The last band performs at 9 p.m. and awards will be handed out afterward.

Nation Ford Band Director Martin Dickey said the band will spend the week continuing to make improvements to its show based on feedback from judges at the Bands of America Regional Championship in Alabama, which Nation Ford attended several weeks ago.

?Our goal is just to be competitive,? Dickey said. ?You never know what six or seven judges? opinions are going to be so you just do the best you can do and let everything else happen the way it does. You can?t control those things. All we control is doing the best we can.?

Fort Mill?s Director, John Pruitt, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Indian Land High School Marching Band also competed in the Upper State competition on Saturday, in Class 2A. The band did not score high enough to qualify for the State competition, though it did have ?one of our best visual runs ever since I have been at Indian Land,? said director Mathew Willis.

The band will perform on Oct. 27 at the Mighty Knight Invitational at Ardrey Kell.

For State competition results, visit the Fort Mill Times Facebook page or Twitter account @fortmilltimes.

Source: http://www.fortmilltimes.com/2012/10/22/2280359/on-to-state-fort-mill-nation-ford.html

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