Bluecoats keep it rolling, hold off surging Boston Crusaders in Atlanta

ATLANTA, Georgia — With just two weeks left in the season, Bluecoats’ undefeated run through the 2024 DCI Tour picked up another key checkbox on Saturday night in the Peach State.

While the corps’ lead over the field of World Class competitors slimmed to just over half a point at the DCI Southeastern Championship presented by Ultimate Drill Book, the Canton, Ohio corps extended its win streak to 11-straight events. It’s just the second Southeastern Championship title in the corps’ history with its last in 2016. 

“We have a lot of energy going into the next two weeks, and I feel like the only thing we can do is keep driving to the end,” Bluecoats drum major Antonio Gamez said. “We’ve been saying, ‘Our show is changing but the corps is not,’ a lot this season, and we’ve taken a lot of that saying to heart. We’ve stuck to that since day one, and it’s been paying off.” 

On the scoresheets, Bluecoats took home top marks in every caption except color guard and percussion, which both went to the Boston Crusaders, and brass, which went to the Blue Devils.

 

1. Bluecoats » 94.425
2. Boston Crusaders » 93.875 
3. Blue Devils » 93.325

Boston Crusaders continued to build momentum upon a historic Friday night in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, in Atlanta. 

While fending off Blue Devils by a little over a half a point, the New England corps also noticeably closed its gap behind Bluecoats from 1.10 points in Murfreesboro to just 0.55 in Atlanta, thanks especially to its top color guard and percussion scores. 

Although the members of the corps are excited about their recent competitive success Crusaders drum major Wes Booker says the corps is striving to find their strongest performance under the lights of Lucas Oil Stadium at the DCI World Championship this August. 

“We’ve talked a lot as a corps about making every single day the best yet,” Booker said. “We only have two weeks left until we’re in Indianapolis, and we’re trying to max out our potential every single day. We’re having the best time with each other making sure we get as much progress as possible to have a great end of the season.” 

 

4. Phantom Regiment » 91.650
5. Carolina Crown » 91.575
6. Santa Clara Vanguard » 89.475
7. Mandarins » 88.150

Phantom Regiment and Carolina Crown have spent much of the 2024 season locked in one of several highly-contested head-to-head matchups. One week ago, just three tenths of a point separated the two corps. Friday night’s event in Murfreesboro marked the first time in over a decade that the Rockford-based corps placed ahead of 2023’s bronze medalist. 

Saturday night at Center Parc Stadium, Regiment maintained its slim advantage thanks to a miniscule lead in general effect (0.025 points) and a one tenth advantage in overall music. 

Saturday night’s performance— in what Carolina Crown drum major Hudson Scott would call the corps’ strongest run to date— featured a revamped final section of “Promethean,” which includes the corps’ trademark visual formation of a crown.

“It was amazing,” Scott said. “We got our final movement on the field this week and that was a very good run.” 

Santa Clara Vanguard continued a string of close head-to-head victories over the Mandarins, extending their advantage to 1.325 points in Atlanta thanks largely to strong advantages in the visual and music captions.

Mandarins, however, kept within striking distance, and scored ahead of Vanguard in brass and color guard. As the 2024 DCI Tour enters its final two weeks, Mandarins’ focus is on strengthening its production and maximizing the corps’ remaining opportunities. 

“It’s just remembering our why,” Mandarins drum major Maya McBrayer said. “Our staff has been helping us with that by explaining why they chose to stick with the activity for so long. We’re good people making good music, and that’s what we’re staying true to.” 

 

8. Blue Stars » 86.725
9. Colts » 85.850
10. Crossmen » 81.725
11. Spirit of Atlanta » 80.800

After a highly-competitive start to the season between Blue Stars and Colts that saw the two consistently trading higher scores in head-to-head matchups, the former has begun to establish competitive breathing room in recent weeks, including a sizeable advantage of 1.588 points on July 20 in San Antonio. 

At Saturday's Atlanta event, Blue Stars maintained an advantage largely due to a sizable lead in general effect (0.65 points), but Colts slimmed the gap in total score down to 0.875 points. Colts’ high marks on the scoresheets were in visual proficiency and percussion where they took 7th place ahead of Blue Stars and Mandarins. 

“Tonight’s run was a really strong performance from our full drum corps,” Colts drum major Carissa Blumka said. “We’ve had some time for refinement and rehearsals the last couple days, and you can tell the little enhancements we’ve made to our production are really allowing us to put on a really strong performance for the crowd tonight.” 

The race between Crossmen and Spirit of Atlanta has been neck and neck in recent weeks. Based on all competitive metrics, both corps are part of a crowded race for the coveted last spot among the summer’s Top 12 finalist corps. In San Antonio, Crossmen outscored Spirit by 2.575 points, but the Georgia corps landed ahead of Crossmen by 0.3 at Friday’s event in Birmingham, Alabama. 

One night later in Atlanta, Crossmen jumped back ahead of Spirit by 0.925 points thanks largely to standout scores in general effect (0.5-point advantage) and overall music (0.475-point advantage).

For Spirit, though, performing for a hometown crowd brought an extra level of joy. Having spent much of her childhood coming to Center Parc Stadium for Atlanta Braves games, the opportunity to perform in that very stadium while hearing the roar of the crowd offered a meaningful experience for Spirit of Atlanta drum major Morgan Nash.

“It’s a feeling that you rarely feel in life,” Nash said. “That feeling reminds you why you’re doing this activity and who you’re doing it for. Being here in Atlanta and hearing the love from the fans really means the world.” 

 

12. The Academy » 78.450
13. Genesis » 73.750

The Academy, which has recently been locked in a heated race with Music City — who didn’t perform at Saturday’s event — landed a mark of 78.450 in 12th place. The Arizona corps’ strongest marks on the scoresheets came in the music caption (tied for 11th with Spirit of Atlanta overall) which included an 11th-place finish in music analysis. 

“Tonight’s run was electric,” Academy drum major Sammy Rodriguez said. “The members on the field were so energetic and they were projecting their energy to the audience in Atlanta very well.” 

Rounding out the Atlanta lineup, Genesis posted a score of 73.750, which marked an improvement of 2.05 points from the corps’ July 24 tally in Monroe, Louisiana.

 
1. Atlanta CV » 82.775 

Atlanta CV represented the brand-new DCI All-Age Class Saturday in its hometown. The corps posted a score of 82.775, which marked an improvement of more than five points from its result at the same event in 2023. 

“It’s absolutely electric,” Atlanta CV drum major Gabriel Sanchez said. “This is probably the largest crowd we’ll perform in front of all year, so it’s absolutely awesome knowing that all these people support us just because we’re from the same hometown.” 

WATCH: Atlanta CV staffers discuss the corps' performance in Atlanta

Following Saturday’s performance, Atlanta CV will make its way toward Indianapolis, as a participant in the inaugural DCI All-Age World Championship, slated for August 10 at Lucas Oil Stadium. 

Following the Southeastern Championships, Saturday’s World Class competitors will split off to three different events in the coming days, with Sunday's NightBEAT event in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, serving as another late-season headliner.

View the 2024 DCI Tour Schedule

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