It should not come as much of a shock to the Battlefield High School community that the school's Marching Bobcats band earned a superior rating last month.

The Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association performed its annual assessment of the 171-member group on October 22, lauding BHS with a unanimous rating of "1".

Battlefield performed last on the day, starting at 1:30 p.m. after 11 other groups that included Brentsville District and Kettle Run.

What this means for Battlefield is simple validation for the group heading to perform at the Bowl Championship Series national championship in New Orleans on January 9.

There, after a 22-hour bus ride, the team is set to perform during the half-time show in front of a country-wide audience alongside some of the most elite high school bands throughout the United States.

On the field

"I love when I call the band to attention," said senior clarinet player Glendon Mohan, who also serves alongside junior flute player Liana Smith as the on-the-field conductors for the band. "I love that sound."

Band director Matt Brodt, who has led the program since its 2004 inception, mentioned that even though Battlefield lost students this year due to the opening of Patriot High School, band recruitment still rose by nine members.

He said that he expects that number to drop down to about 2009 levels after next year as fewer students enter Battlefield.

"The biggest thing I had to learn coming to Battlefield form Potomac was letting the kids take ownership of everything we do," said Brodt.

Mohan and Smith are prime examples of that as the two stood some yards apart at homecoming this year by the south side of the home stands while their bandmates formed a semi-circle arch around them along the track.

This is the second year for Mohan as an on-the-field director for Battlefield as she's one of the band's best.

Students working their way up the band hierarchy is common at BHS like other schools, and Brodt said he's already identified a few freshmen that are likely to take over leadership roles within the next few years.

"I stress every year that I'll take it as far as they want to go," he said.

Their year starts at summer camp with the sound of a metronome endlessly clicking just to "get the tempo stuck in our head," said Smith.

After that comes the choreography and playing, synching up with the flag guard and learning to stretch the length of a football field while memorizing tunes note-for-note.

"I could probably sing the whole show right now," said Mohan as she stood in the hallway outside of the band room after homecoming earlier this month.

The Bobcats practice for at least seven hours a week and can be seen every week at football games, taking the field during half time of home games.

As the football team goes, so does the band, as they'll show up throughout the playoffs if the boys on the field are fortunate enough to qualify.

"I think our performances definitely show our hard work," said senior Michelle Hettman.

Think big

Brodt encapsulated the grand picture of what it means for Battlefield to have a trip to New Orleans under the biggest spotlight high school music has to offer.

"To have little old Haymarket on the national level, it's beyond comparison. There's nothing that I can say to a community member, administrator (or) parent (to convey) the sheer intense adrenaline that the kids get from performing at a venue like that.

"It truly is a once in a lifetime opportunity," he added.