This past weekend, the four competitions that attracted major Ohio groups saw a variety of upsets, shocking results, and close caption splits. Read on to find out who came out on top of this past weekend’s events and what it might mean for Ohio show choir going forward!
Findlay FEst
GC: Solon “Music In Motion” (BV, BC)
1RU: Grove City “Touch of Class”
2RU: Piqua “The Company”
3RU: Beavercreek “Friends”
4RU: Grosse Pointe South “Pointe Singers”
5RU: Grove City “Class Act”
Solon showed up in a big way in their first competition of the season, sweeping the field to take home their first Grand Championship since the pandemic. 2nd and 3rd places were a rematch of November’s Ada Music Feast between Grove City and Piqua, and saw a placement switch between prelims and finals. In the end, Grove City beat Piqua to take 2nd place, while Piqua finished out the podium as a respectable 3rd. Beavercreek took 4th place in their first competition of the season, followed by Grosse Pointe South in their competitive debut under the direction of Carolyn Gross and Heather Albrecht. Rounding out finals was Grove City’s womens group, the only single gender group at the competition.
Also of note was the competition in Small Mixed, which saw Grosse Pointe South win the division and earn a finals placement. Rounding out the small mixed podium was Twinsburg, now in their third year of competing in Small Mixed after several seasons of dominating Ohio, and Lebanon, who earned an award for Best Set in their debut under the direction of Seth Helton. They were followed in Small Mixed by Grosse Pointe South’s prep group, who earned 4th, and Ada, who earned 5th, both in their competition season debuts. Rounding out the division was Joanthan Alder, who couldn’t quite build on their success after placing 2nd in Small Mixed at Beavercreek.
North Royalton Showdown
GC: Medina “Encore Entertainment Company” (BV)
1RU: Herbert Hoover “High Impact” (BC)
2RU: Garfield Heights “Music Express”
3RU: Sheridan “Northern Stars”
4RU: Strongsville “Mustang Express”
5RU: Teays Valley “Glamorous Edition”
The inaugural North Royalton Showdown featured a caption split at the very top, indicating a close battle between eventual Grand Champion Medina (who, like Twinsburg, are in their third year of competing in Small Mixed) and 2nd place finisher Herbert Hoover, a perennial small mixed power who joined the competition from West Virginia. They were followed by perennial Ohio small group contenders Garfield Heights, Sheridan, and Strongsville, in 3rd, 4th, and 5th places respectively. They were joined in finals by Teays Valley’s womens’ group, who notably beat Teays’ mixed group to take home a 6th place finish.
Northrop Classique
Mixed Finals
GC: ETC “The All Americans” (BV, BC)
1RU: Loveland “By Request”
2RU: Hurricane “Red Hot”
3RU: Marion Harding “Harding Singers”
4RU: Austin “Dimensions”
Single-Gender Finals
GC: ETC “Rouge” (BV, BC)
1RU: Hurricane “Heat Wave”
2RU: Loveland “Allure”
ETSweep! ETSweep! This was something of a surprise result, but by no means an undeserved result. The All Americans debuted a show about the dark side of Hollywood swept a large mixed division that included perennial Grand Champions Loveland and Hurricane. The 2nd and 3rd place fight was a rematch of Beavercreek’s competition a few weeks ago, with Loveland coming out on top once again over Hurricane. Marion Harding came out in 4th place, a solid finish in this stacked mixed division. Austin, one of last year’s breakout small mixed groups, rounded out mixed finals, following up on a solid finish at Anderson’s finals the week before, indicating another solid year for this program.
In the single gender division, ETC’s womens group Rouge, known to be among the best (if not the best) in Ohio, swept a solid field. 2nd and 3rd places were again a rematch of Beavercreek, with Hurricane’s womens group coming out on top once again over Loveland’s. Other noteworthy results from this competition include Austin winning the small mixed division in prelims over stalwarts Columbia City and Garrett, as well as the three single gender finalists beating out groups like Marion Harding’s men, Columbia City’s women, and South Side’s women.
Winfield Emerald Classic
Large Mixed Finals
GC: Marysville “Swingers Unlimited” (BC)
1RU: Olentangy “Keynotes” (BV)
Small Mixed Finals
GC: Poca “Visual Volume” (BV, BC)
1RU: Sissonville “Touch of Class”
2RU: Nitro “Showcats”
Single-Gender Finals
GC: Olentangy “She-Notes” (BV, BC)
1RU: Cabell Midland “Rhythm in Red”
Though Large Mixed played out as most people anticipated, that doesn’t mean there still weren’t surprises. Marysville, one of the best groups in Ohio, took a win in large mixed as well as the Best Choreography award. In 2nd place was Olentangy, a rising star in Ohio show choir, who took Best Vocals. Forcing Marysville into a split caption win is a great sign for Olentangy, and heralds a strong season for them. Small Mixed was filled with a fair amount of upsets. For starters, strong Ohio groups Ross, Edgewood, and St. Clairsville failed to make finals, meaning small mixed finals was a battle of West Virginia groups. Poca swept the division over consistently strong West Virginia stalwarts Sissonville and Nitro, which signals a strong season for them.
In Single-Gender finals, Olentangy’s womens group started their seventh year of competition with a sweep over Cabell Midland, building their reputation as one of the strongest womens groups in Ohio. Other noteworthy results from this competition include the return of Ripley to competitive show choir with the debut of their group Phoenix Blue, as well as the debut of Nitro’s new mens group. Finally, in the middle school division, Bunsold Middle School (which feeds into Marysville) swept Ross Middle School, one of the stronger Ohio MS programs, which signals strong competition in Ohio middle school divisions this season.
January 27 was an exciting day for Ohio groups, as many came away with upset wins or caption splits. If last Saturday was any indication, Ohio show choir should be good this season. Make sure to keep an eye on HomeRoom Show Choir for coverage throughout the season, including an update later this week about Ohio competitions this Saturday.