2019 WGI Guard Championships - A Class Finals

Find out where your favorite A Class guards landed in the 2019 WGI Guard World Championships A Class Finals

Apr 6, 2019 by Marcus Hopkins

2019 WGI Guard Championships - A Class Finals

The best A Class guards in the world gathered in Dayton, OH, this week, for the 2019 WGI Guard World Championships to see who would claim the honor of being an A Class Finalist. On Friday, April 5th, they got their answer.

Let's see who made the grade:

Scholastic A:

In SA, twenty guards made it to A Class Finals, and while getting into Finals, competition was super steep. Coming out of Semi-Finals, scores were wicked close: 20th-17th all scored between 90.680 and 90.940 - less than 0.3 difference; 16th-9th all scored between 91.120 and 91.950 which, while not as close, is still a pretty tight grouping of scores.

Let's take a look at what changed between Semi-Finals to Finals:

Semi-Finals			Change	Finals
Placement	Unit	Score	Change	Placement	Unit	Score
20	Billerica Memorial HS	90.680	20 -> 16	20	Lafayette HS	84.310
19	O'Fallon Township HS	90.785	=	19	O'FallonTownship HS	85.020
18	Lafayette HS	90.905	18 -> 20	18	Harrison HS	85.350
17	Southlake Carroll HS	90.940	17 -> 15	17	Grassfield HS	85.455
16	Harrison HS	91.120	16 -> 18	16	Billerica Memorial HS	86.100
15	East Lincoln HS	91.285	15 -> 14	15	Southlake Carroll HS	87.140
14	Grassfield HS	91.345	14 -> 17	14	East Lincoln HS	87.685
13	Damonte Ranch HS	91.495	=	13	Damonte Ranch HS	88.535
12	Somerset Academy	91.550	12 -> 10	12	Sebastian River HS	88.995
11	Sebastian River HS	91.735	11 -> 12	11	Alpharetta HS	89.125
10	Alpharetta HS	91.895	10 -> 11	10	Somerset Academy	90.880
9	Lockport Township HS	91.950	9 -> 8	9	Pflugerville HS	91.795
8	Blue Springs HS Varsity	92.335	8 -> 6	8	Lockport Township HS	92.135
7	Central Square HS	92.900	=	7	Central Square HS	92.715
6	Pflugerville HS	92.905	6 -> 9	6	Blue Springs HS	93.070
5	Northwest Cabarrus HS	92.950	5 -> 3	5	Rancho Cucamonga HS	95.270
4	Freedom HS (Tampa)	92.970	=	4	Freedom HS	95.565
3	Rancho Cucamonga HS	93.345	3 -> 5	3	Northwest Cabarrus HS	95.645
2	Sunlake HS	93.485	=	2	Sunlake HS	97.590
1	Fleming Island HS	94.270	=	1	Fleming Island HS	97.720

As you can see, there were a LOT of placement shifts from Semi-Finals to Finals, and the scores, themselves, opened up a lot between contests. This can be kind of confusing - "How did my guard go from scoring a 90 in Semis, to an 84 in Finals?!"

Well, a lot of that has to do with how Rounds are structured. Scoring in rounds can lead to higher scores based upon how one group performed compared to the other guards in their round. Once you advance to Finals, you're competing against the best of those rounds, and you're essentially getting a clean read, meaning that judges view your guard based not on the score you got the night before, but on where you're placed coming into Finals competition. When this happens, scores can fluctuate pretty wildly, as was the case, last night.

One of the biggest jumps of the night was Billerica Memorial HS (Billerica, MA), with their program, "The Crown," moving from 20th Place up to 16th. Their program made excellent use of floor design to help drive staging. Their floor had four cobblestone paths stretching out from the center dais where the throne sat, effectively quadrisecting the floor into four different "stages" in which performers could spin. It allowed the guard to spin in smaller groups, creating excellent opportunities for the layering of equipment work and directing focus to certain parts of the floor. They also had a phenomenal run.

With a score of 95.645, Northwest Cabarrus HS (Concord, NC) jumped from 5th to 3rd, coming out with a really strong program - "And So it Goes" - that had a fantastic floor design that made excellent use of negative space, while creating a small stage on Side One for the performers to come together in a small space. They displayed excellent control of their equipment, as well as strength in movement both with, and without their equipment.

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In 2nd Place, with a score of 97.590, Sunlake HS stunned the audience with their program, "Shhh...Keep it Down," using an operatic cover of Til' Tuesday's 1980s classic, "Voices Carry." There were so many great things going on in this program, from their gorgeous floor and flag designs, to their fantastic equipment writing and execution. Though not my favorite cover of this song, it's hard to argue with the interpretation. They moved well, spun well, and the staging was very well done.

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In 1st Place, with a score of 97.720, Fleming Island HS (Fleming Island, FL) danced their way to the gold with their program, "They Will Come and They Will Go." This show displayed Fleming Island's phenomenal movement training. There was a phenomenal flag/rifle partner feature about a minute into the show that really demonstrates the quality training these performers have received. In the middle of the program, the performers enter into a moving dance block, which they do very well. It served as a nice break from the equipment work. Their ensemble flag statement at the end was very well layered and excellently executed.

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WGI fans voted Central Square HS (Central Square, NY) and their program, "1, 2, and 3, 4, 5," as the 2019 Scholastic A Class Fans' Favorite

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Independent A:

In IA, fifteen guards made it to Finals competition on Friday night. There weren't as many placement switches in IA as there were in SA, and the ones that were weren't as dramatic as the ones in SA. That said, there was some phenomenal guard on display, this evening. Let's take a look:

Semi-Finals			Change	Finals
Placement	Unit	Score	Change	Placement	Unit	Score
15	National Avenue	88.770	15 -> 13	15	Verve	85.385
14	Verve	88.920	14 -> 15	13	National Avenue	85.675
13	Gates Chili Independent Winter Guard	89.260	=	13	Gates Chili Independent Winter Guard	85.675
12	i-Squared	89.320	=	12	i-Squared	86.130
11	Anesidora	89.670	11 -> 10	11	Malachi Independent A	88.565
10	Malachi Independent A	90.370	10 -> 11	10	Anesidora	89.210
9	Metanoia Winter Guard	90.620	=	9	Metanoia Winter Guard	89.905
8	Jacksonville University Winterguard	90.730	=	8	Jacksonville University Winterguard	90.705
7	Divenire Winter Guard	90.790	7 -> 6	7	3rd Legend	90.960
6	Onyx	90.910	6 -> 5	6	Divenire	91.000
5	3rd Legend	91.350	5 -> 7	5	Onyx	92.080
4	AMP	92.000	4 -> 3	4	University of South Florida A	93.555
3	University of South Florida A	92.300	3 -> 4	3	AMP	94.485
2	St. Anns	93.430	=	2	St. Ann's	95.080
1	Icon Winter Guard	95.340	=	1	Icon Winter Guard	98.055

With a score of 94.485, AMP (Camden, NJ) came in 3rd Place with their program, "Pocket Full of Dreams," a very nice cover of Alicia Keys' "Empire State of Mind." I was really in love with their floor design, which had a great brick street design, along with several working lamp posts.

AMP's show had a lot of really fantastic equipment writing that was incredibly musical and highly responsive to the lyrics. Moreover, the show was very well performed - the performers showed great control over form, body, and equipment. The introduction of the yellow flag at the end of the show was a fantastic splash of color and the ensemble flag statement they performed with it was just...breathtaking.

WGI fans also voted AMP the 2019 Independent A Class Fans' Favorite

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In 2nd Place, with a score of 95.080, was St. Ann's (Neponset, MA), with their program, "Passageways." St. Ann's, of course, has a long history with WGI, being involved in the performing arts for at least 86 years (in various incarnations). They last came to Dayton in 2015, when they won Independent A class, and this year's show was just as impressive.

This year's program demonstrated St. Ann's excellent equipment training and technique. The show made great use of negative space and oppositional staging, balancing performers on the opposing sides of the floor. It really was an enjoyable program, from start to finish, and an excellent representation of the St. Ann's tradition.

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In 1st Place, with a score of 98.055, was Icon Winter Guard (Los Angeles, CA) with their program, "Break Some Ice." I simply can't say enough great things about this program and this show: these performers are superbly trained, exhibiting phenomenal control over their body and equipment performances. This is, perhaps, be exemplified in the opening rifle feature atop the platforms. The rifle line performed incredibly nuanced rifle work that required balance, precision, and extreme control.

This excellence continued throughout the entirety of the program, well earning their score of 98.055. The guard moved sublimely, spun amazingly, and really sold a show that was well above A Class in terms of content.

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On behalf of FloMarching, I would like to congratulate every A Class guard who made it to this year's 2018 WGI Guard World Championships Finals, and I look forward to seeing what you have to offer us in 2020.