After months of long practices and competitions, the Anna Lee Winter Color Guard achieved success at the Atlantic Indoor Association (AIA) Championship on April 3 by placing fourth in the overall competition. This is the highest honor that the AHS winter guard has ever received. The guard spent three days in Chesapeake, Virginia and performed twice for the judges. This concludes an exciting season for the guard, in which they added two students from Lee HS to their 20 AHS members.

“Last season, we did not make it past preliminaries. And this season, not only did we make finals, but we placed,” color guard Assistant Coach Regina Howard said. “This is a great achievement for our team.”

The students left school on April 1 and practiced for a few hours after arriving in Chesapeake. On April 2 they performed a mash-up of both Queen and Glee’s renditions of “Somebody to Love” in the preliminary competition. Their scores garnered the team a spot in the championship the final day of the competition. In their performance, the guard was a sea of black, with black shirts, pants and flags. Certain members also used rifles and sabers during the competition. Senior Edgard Santos, who is the captain of the team, had three solos throughout the performance. “I think that this group has been very strong. It has been successful,” Band Director and color guard sponsor Andrew Loft said.

The guard practices twice a week, on Tuesdays and Fridays. There have also been many daylong practices on Saturdays. Throughout the season there have been a few injuries, but the team has persevered.

“Injury is always a part of what we do,” Loft said. He also believes that anyone who does the guard has to be extraordinarily fit and talented.

Overall, members of the guard think that the merger with Lee has had a positive effect on their performance this season. “I think the merger was a great success. Robert E. Lee has not had an active [winter] color guard since 1999. This was a great opportunity for students with similar interests to participate in an activity that is normally overlooked,” Howard said.

The color guard will hold auditions for next year in May, though the exact date has yet to be announced. Students who make the team would be part of the Marching Band for Fall 2011. “We are looking for students with dance experience or technique. And anyone and everyone who may be interested in color guard,” Howard said.

The guard is also in consensus that the bar has been raised for next season now that they have placed fourth in the second largest color guard circuit in the U.S. “It’s hard to say what the future holds. We hope to continue to build the guard,” Loft said.