By KRISTEN HILL, Contributor

The Vandegrift band and Vision Dance Co. took home the bronze medal at 2018 UIL 6A State Marching Contest on Nov. 6.  

This is the fifth consecutive state trip for the band, and their third state medal in the program’s ten-year history.  

“This year’s State Finals Contest featured an amazingly competitive and impressive collection of bands… to come out of it as one of the top three 6A Marching Bands in the State of Texas is so exciting,” said Mike Howard, VHS director of bands.  

The two-day state contest was held in the Alamodome in San Antonio. It began with 41 bands advancing from nine areas in a preliminary round, then narrowed down to 12 finalist bands.  

Five judges rank the bands on music and marching.  Leander ISD had three bands in the top five. The 2018 state finalists in awards order are: Vista Ridge HS, Flower Mound HS, Vandegrift HS, Hebron HS, Leander HS, Ronald Reagan HS, CT Johnson HS, Keller HS, The Woodlands HS, Marcus HS, Cedar Ridge HS, and Waxahachie HS.

“I’m so happy for the other LISD 6A bands for their amazing success,” Howard said.  

The Vandegrift band will hold a UIL state medal awards ceremony in the near future, where each student will receive a bronze medal.  

“I continue to be inspired by what our students are able to accomplish and their final performance was exceptional,” Howard said. “The students’ emotional response immediately following their final performance was a great reminder of the ‘why’ of what we do in the band program. The students’ care for each other and love for performance was evident by the hugs, tears and smiles.”