Richmond Hill High School

Wildcat Marching Band Named Grand Champion of 2008 Coastal Empire Classic

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The Wildcat marching band traveled to Effingham County High School Saturday to compete in the 27th  Coastal Empire Classic Marching Band Competition.  The Wildcats competed against twelve other bands in Class A thru AAAAA.  Each class would have a winner and a runner-up and the band judged with the highest overall score regardless of class would be honored by receiving the Grand Champion award for the event. 

All bands were judged in seven categories; Musical Performance, Visual Performance, General Effect, Drum Major, Color Guard, Percussion, and Drill Team/Majorette if applicable. The Wildcats main competition in the AAAAA Class was Houston County High School as both schools received Superior Ratings across the board and split the individual AAAAA judged award categories. The Wildcat Band in class AAAAA won best Band, Color Guard, Musical Performance, and General Effect. They also won for the overall competition out of thirteen bands, best Color Guard, Musical Performance, and General Effect. Houston County was however not the Wildcat marching bands only competition as three other bands received superior ratings as well and were in the running for the Grand Champion award.

Dr. Daniel Kiene, RHHS Band Director, was very pleased with the outcome.  Dr. Kiene indicated, “I could not be happier for the kids.  They have worked hard since band camp and it is great to see the hard work rewarded.  I am grateful for the support we have received from the administration, staff, and parents, it is a true team effort.”  Mr. Stephen Hendricks, Assistant Band Director, echoed Dr. Kienes’  comments, “The kids are awesome.  Being part of the band is a huge commitment.  They have been working hard since July and it is good to see that hard work pay off.  The support we have received has been wonderful.  We could not do what we do without the support we receive.”

The evening ended with the Wildcat band taking best in class AAAAA and they were also selected as the overall Grand Champions with the highest score of the competition, 94.05 with Houston County coming in at a close second with a score of 93.2. The Wildcat marching band started out this year's rather quick paced band marching competition season with great success.  The band hopes to continue with and improve their high ratings over the next two weeks as they will compete on 25 Oct at the LaFayette Marching Classic in Fayetteville, GA and 1 Nov in the 29th Annual Old South Marching Festival and Competition in Newnan, GA.  Competition specifics can be found on the Prep Sports Central website in the Upcoming Events header.