Utica’s marching band has won the WDIV 4Frenzy contest for the best marching band in the state for the second year in a row (excluding last year, as there was no contest due to the COVID-19 pandemic).

The contest’s winner is based on whoever has the most votes after a certain amount of weeks. People could vote by going to Local 4 News’ website and choosing which marching band they wanted to vote for once every hour.

“I was expecting us to win, but I did have a small amount of doubt in my mind due to us having a smaller marching band this year than we did two years ago,” junior Nathan Wunschl said. “Since the contest is based on whoever has the most votes, I figured the other bands with more numbers would’ve won.”

Other members of the band didn’t share the same doubts.

“I didn’t have any doubts at all,” sophomore Van Wright said. “We had the constant dedication from our parents, so I knew we would’ve won.”

Commitment to the band is a sentiment shared throughout the band’s members and supporters.

“Our marching band has such dedicated people. Our members have so much spirit and we get so much support from our families,” Wunschl said. “We put our heart and soul into performances.”

People were able to vote as many times as they wanted, so many people voted repeatedly to boost Utica’s chances of winning.

“I voted around fifteen times,” junior Daniel Waterstradt said. “I voted because I feel like we deserve to win since we worked very hard this season.”

Learning that Utica won the contest was exciting to many of its members.

“I was really excited to find out we won the contest, and I’m very proud to be in a band that has that title,” junior Alaina Wisswell said. “Winning competitions like this means a lot to me because it feels like a payoff for all the hard work we’ve done throughout the season.”

While the members of Utica’s marching band definitely care about recognition and fame, the glory of winning doesn’t matter to them as much as commitment and spirit do.

“I think teamwork is more important than winning,” Wisswell said. “Without it, it just makes winning a competition way less meaningful. When we hear those announcements saying we won, it feels like something worth celebrating and that all of the time and effort we put into it was worth it.”

“Recognition for winning contests like this is really important to me, but so is spirit,” Waterstradt said. “If I had to pick between the two, I would probably choose spirit. Spirit is what actually ties the band together and is why our band is so fun and amazing.”