The Marshall Tiger Marching Band was among 17 bands who took part in the Pursuit of Excellence band competition in Marshall Saturday. The event combines band clinics with a judged competition in the evening.

MARSHALL — When the theme of your marching band show is “Run,” you’ve got to hustle on the field.

As the 28th annual Pursuit of Excellence started up Saturday morning, Marshall High School students weren’t just rehearsing music and marching drills. At different points during their show, band members were running across the field, or even freezing mid-step in running poses.

Making exaggerated movements was one of the challenges in this year’s show, marching band members said.

“The hardest part is projecting,” said MHS student Brennen Thooft. Students’ movements and expressions needed to be clear enough to see all the way up in the stands.

“We want to make sure the audience knows what we’re doing,” added band member Karsten Springborg.

The Tiger Marching Band was one of 17 bands from around Minnesota, Iowa and South Dakota taking part in Pursuit over the weekend. Before the competition and judged exhibition started Saturday night, bands and spent time working with judges and clinicians to improve their skills.

Bands ranged in size from about 40 students playing wind and percussion, to more than 150 students. Bands placing first in their classes at this year’s competition included the Oriole Pride Marching Band from Lennox, S.D., the Harrisburg Marching Band form Harrisburg, S.D., the Mitchell High School Marching Band from Mitchell, S.D., and the Brandon Valley Marching Lynx from Brandon, S.D.

Saturday got off to a rocky start, with a thunderstorm dropping rain and even hail on parts of Marshall earlier in the morning. However, the skies cleared in time for Pursuit. Students were able to start their band clinics on schedule, said Marshall band director Larry Petersen. “The weather came through at exactly the right time,” he said.

Working with Pursuit judges during band clinics was one of the exciting parts of the event, Marshall students said.

“It’s really eye-opening,” said MHS student Joseph Nwafor, a trumpet player in the band. “You get an outside perspective.”

“I feel like we got a lot done,” said MHS student Sydney Larson, who plays mellophone with the band.

Larson and fellow band member Jessie DeJaeghere said repetition and practice during the clinic would help the Tigers on the field.

“It’s also being open to new ideas,” DeJaeghere said. The band got a lot of good advice during the band clinic, she said.

Judges said working with band students was also an important part of Pursuit for them.

“It’s a very unique experience, because I get to be able to share my knowledge with the kids, from a judge’s perspective,” said Ryan Turner. It’s a different experience from getting critiques after a competition, he said.

Turner was one of the judges working with Marshall students during their band clinic. As Tiger Marching Band and color guard students gathered around, Ryan encouraged them to approach competition with a confident mindset.

“It’s coming into the stadium and saying, ‘I’m going to show you what I’ve got,'” he told them. “That’s the essence of competition.”

Pursuit of Excellence results

Gold Class (30-50 winds and percussion)

1st Place: Oriole Pride Marching Band, Lennox, S.D.

2nd Place: Bishop Heelan Catholic High School, Sioux City, Iowa

3rd Place: Estherville Lincoln Central, Estherville, Iowa

Crimson Class (51-61 winds and percussion)

1st Place: Harrisburg Marching Band, Harrisburg, S.D.

2nd Place: Sioux Falls Jefferson, Sioux Falls, S.D.

3rd Place: West Lyon Wildcat Marching Band, Inwood, Iowa

Navy Class (62-90 winds and percussion)

1st Place: Mitchell High School Marching Band, Mitchell, S.D.

2nd Place: O’Gorman High School Marching Knights, Sioux Falls, S.D.

3rd Place: West Central Marching Trojans, Hartford, S.D.

Ivory Class (91-160 winds and percussion)

1st Place: Brandon Valley Marching Lynx, Brandon, S.D.

2nd Place: Brookings Bobcat Marching Band, Brookings, S.D.

3rd Place: Huron Tiger Marching Band, Huron, S.D.