INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana – Reading Buccaneers, Cincinnati Tradition, and Govenaires took home top spots in their respective competitive divisions at the DCI All-Age Class Championships held Friday morning at Lucas Oil Stadium.
All-Age Class corps, who are split into World, Open and ‘A’ Class distinctions, competed within their own tiers Friday, with the opportunity for the Top 12 to move on to the DCI All-Age World Championship Finals on Saturday.
In year two of DCI’s All-Age division, the brand-new Friday event served as an exciting addition to All-Age festivities in Indianapolis.
“Being in an arena like this, you can’t top it, so it’s exciting for us,” said Reading Buccaneers drum major Andrea Gwyn. We don’t travel normally; we do drum corps on the weekends, so for us it changes our schedule a little bit, but we got in here, and we rehearsed for a couple days.”
WORLD CLASS
1. Reading Buccaneers » 96.375
2. Hawthorne Caballeros » 93.900
3. Bushwackers » 92.575
4. Atlanta CV » 90.900
5. Hurricanes » 87.725
The defending All-Age World Class champions posted a commanding lead over the All-Age field, scoring an impressive 96.375 — checking in ahead of last year’s final tally of 95.925 — and sweeping all captions.
“The show was great for us; we’ve never had the opportunity to play in the dome, so we were kind of on edge, but it was a really great run for us, and we can’t wait to step it up a notch and do one more show tomorrow,” Gwyn said.
Hawthorne Caballeros, though, impressed all the same, earning almost its exact tally from last year’s final event.
Also vying for a second-consecutive All-Age medalist position, Bushwackers posted a strong score and earned considerable breathing room ahead of Atlanta CV and Hurricanes, outscoring those two corps in all captions except brass where they took fourth. A highlight for Bushwackers on the scoresheets was second place in percussion.
“It’s been incredible performing in Indianapolis this weekend; it’s a little bit intimidating at first, but it definitely puts you in a different kind of atmosphere where you’re able to perform in a different level,” said Bushwackers drum major Hunter King. “Lucas Oil really creates the drum corps atmosphere everybody craves and dreams of as a kid watching, so it’s a dream to be here.”
Atlanta CV, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary, earned fourth place and broke the 90-point threshold for the first time in Lucas Oil Stadium; the Georgia corps also matched its All-Age World Championship placement from 2024 in Friday’s event.
Hurricanes checked in at fifth place in the World Class division, scoring 87.725 and ranking just behind Atlanta CV in Music Analysis.
OPEN CLASS
1. Cincinnati Tradition » 90.025
2. White Sabers » 85.375
3. Rogues Hollow Regiment » 83.400
4. Sunrisers » 83.325
5. MBI » 79.550
6. Northern Lights » 76.425
With a commanding margin of victory of more than four points, Cincinnati Tradition took home its second consecutive All-Age Open Class championship, sweeping all captions except percussion.
“It was so crazy to see us perform in such a big stadium, coming from Cincinnati, Ohio, but it was phenomenal; this was our best run, and to see all those performers smiling out there, I couldn’t have asked for a better performance,” said Cincinnati Tradition drum major Jillian Oglesby. “Being here in Indianapolis is wholesome and everything that we could’ve asked for.”
In a strong second place, White Sabers kept a solid lead over the remainder of the Open Class pack thanks especially to the corps’ strong General Effect scores.
“Performing in Lucas Oil is very different from anything else we’ve done; with the whole environment, it’s been a great experience,” said White Sabers drum major Holden Taylor.
A razor-thin margin of 0.075 separated Rogues Hollow Regiment and Sunrisers for third and fourth placements in Open Class, with caption scores split evenly between the two. Sunrisers finished ahead in both General Effect and Total Music by slim margins, but Rogues Hollow Regiment’s Visual scores made up the difference.
“We brought a lot of strong energy from all the previous weeks that led up to this moment, and I think we had a really strong run,” said Rogues Hollow Regiment drum major Kevin Lin. “It’s been absolutely incredible to express all the different emotions and feelings and challenges we’ve endured throughout the course of the season, and being able to channel that energy in our show to be able to express that and entertain the crowd was a joy.”
MBI, which returned to All-Age action this season after several years in SoundSport, earned fifth in Open Class and posted an impressive first place in Percussion.
“Today’s run was fantastic; that was easily the best run we’ve done of the entire show,” said MBI drum major Jess Fedje. “Competing in this stadium after having watched drum corps for so long is a dream come true. Being on this field and seeing those stands, it’s fantastic.”
While Northern Lights missed the cut-off for Saturday’s Finals event by 0.65 points behind 12th-overall Fusion Core, the Michigan corps made a memorable Lucas Oil Stadium debut, and ranked ahead of MBI in Brass.
“We had so much energy; we’ve been so excited about this,” said Northern Lights drum major Marisa Romano. “It’s all we could talk about all season long, so we really brought everything we had. Regardless of what scores and comments we get, we’re super proud of ourselves.”
A CLASS
1. Govenaires » 80.775
2. Fusion Core » 77.075
3. Columbus Saints » 69.675
Govenaires, who outscored multiple Open Class corps, earned the A Class title at Friday’s event. The Minnesota corps earned its second A Class win in as many years, while winning all captions except percussion.
“That show went incredibly well; we’re super excited to be back in Lucas Oil Stadium, and the crowd is so much fun to hear in the dome,” said Govenaires drum major Sophia Fenske. “I’ve never been in a show this fun before, and I love hearing the crowd engage with everything that we give them.”
As for Fusion Core, the Florida corps won the percussion caption in A Class, with Columbus Saints rounding out the A Class lineup with a final score of 69.675. Fusion Core scored just inside the Top 12 cutoff to earn a Finals performance Saturday
“For the run that we had and the short amount of time that we had to practice beforehand, I think the run went really,” said Fusion Core drum major Rui Lin. “For most of us, it’s our first time performing in Lucas Oil, so we had to get into the performance mindset before we walked into the stadium. As soon as the bus parked, that’s when we had that mindset.”
The Top 12 scoring All-Age corps from Friday’s preliminary event will compete at the DCI All-Age World Championship Finals on Saturday when those corps will look to take home the overall All-Age championship title.
