Nation Ford band marches to another SC high school title, edging out local rival
-2.jpg "The Nation Ford High School marching band celebrates winning the 5A state championship on Saturday, just ahead of Fort Mill High School in second place.")
Nation Ford is state champion again, after finishing just ahead of rival Fort Mill in Saturday’s 5A marching band final.
The title is No. 11 for Nation Ford. It’s also their second straight and second overall in the 5A classification, which is the second-largest group of high schools in South Carolina. Nation Ford also won an upper state championship Saturday with the highest score among 21 bands in the preliminary round at River Bluff High School.
The Nation Ford show, “Out of the Blue,” scored a 94.1 in the finals. Fort Mill finished second with its show, “Home for the Holidays,” at 92.7. Nation Ford won the visual performance and overall effect categories, while Fort Mill won for best music.
The in-town rivals highlighted what was a banner day for Rock Hill region bands.
All five bands from York or Lancaster counties that competed in the preliminary round also advanced to Saturday’s final round. Northwestern finished No. 8 overall, followed by Indian Land at No. 9 and Rock Hill at No. 11.
Across the state at Belton-Honea Path High School in Anderson County, South Pointe gave the Rock Hill region another finalist with its No. 9 finish in the 3A state finals.
The Nation Ford win and silver medal for Fort Mill also punctuated another chapter in a long story of band success in Fort Mill.
The town’s three marching bands now combine for 39 state titles. Saturday marked the second straight year Nation Ford and Catawba Ridge, in 4A, won titles together. Fort Mill, meanwhile, holds a state record 24 titles.
How to see all 3 Fort Mill marching bands at once
Fans of those three bands have a rare opportunity this weekend to see all three perform at the same event.
Catawba Ridge, Fort Mill and Nation Ford will compete in the Bands of America Southeastern Regional Championships just outside of Atlanta. All three bands have never competed in the same state event, since they’ve always been broken into at least two size classifications.
Nation Ford also has a performance coming at the Nov. 13-15 Bands of America Grand National Championships in Indianapolis.
Nation Ford won its first state title in 2009, two years after the school opened. The 11 championships in the span since is tied for the most with Wando, who marches this weekend in 6A competition. Ninety Six could tie Nation Ford with a win in the 1A competition this weekend.
