September 25th was the last night the musical pride of Cortland, Ohio, performed their 2021 show entitled Fuego Latina. As the cymbals crashed and the crowd roared, the Lakeview band showed signs of gratitude to have completed their first full season of traditional band nights after two years of painfully waiting. Covid-19 may have halted the band last year, but that just meant built up energy needing to be released for this entire season. 

Senior Anna Kolonich, the band council president, was “super excited to get back out on the field. Many of the upperclassmen missed the thrill of marching under the lights and hearing the cheers from the crowd. That is something our freshman and sophomore class never got to experience.” 

The season started out at Howland High School in August 2021, where five bands all debuted their new shows for everyone to see and hear. This was Lakeview’s first full show performance of the season, and it did not disappoint, as every student on that field ran out with excitement in their eyes. 

Next, the band was at their home field for Lakeview High School’s Annual Band Night on August 30th, 2021. The stands were so packed that fans needed to crowd around the ends of the bleachers in order to catch the show.

Senior Cade Cratsley, the band council vice-president, put the emotions of the night into his own words, by stating that “the community loves the band so much and it was great to see all the familiar faces in the stands once again!”

The marching Bulldogs had a few weeks off in their season, with Jackson’s Festival of Bands taking place September 18th, 2021. The hour and a half drive was definitely worth it, as this is most of the band’s favorite to perform at. The crowd always goes crazy for the flamboyant show style that Lakeview offers. 

With huge stands and an electric crowd, Adrienne Rich, a freshman majorette, said that she “really enjoyed going to Jackson Band Night because it was something different than all the other band nights. It was nice to see the different sizes and types of bands. It was also really cool to see a big band like Jackson’s and hear how good they sounded.”

Last but certainly not least, the Lakeview band took a trip down the road to Warren G. Harding High School, where they performed at their very last band night of the season on September 25th, 2021. With the largest set of stands in front of them, the band played as loud as they could while the seniors of the band took in their last few moments under the band night lights. 

Mya Best, a senior quad player in the band, described the feeling of her last band night. It was “such a funny feeling. I could still feel the adrenaline from the show, but there was a pit in my stomach knowing that was the last time I would ever perform at a band night. The moment the show ended I was a mess, trying to play the exit cadence through tears. Feeling the excitement, and the crushing weight that soon I would never wear those drums again was so unreal.”

With football games and a Halloween parade still in front of them, the Lakeview High School marching band still has a ton of school spirit in them although the bittersweet feeling of no more band nights is still prevalent. The band isn’t going away anytime soon, so it’s time to stand up Bulldogs, and show the band some support as they finish their marching season!