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CAMPUS

The Norwich Guidon
Mar. 25, 2004

LNU Shock Platoon takes second place in Mardi Gras drill team competition

By Carson Miller
Norwich Guidon Staff Writer

The Norwich Shock Platoon placed second overall in the nation, out of 50 schools which competed in the drill competition at Tulane University in February, 2004.

On the afternoon of the Feb. 17, 25 students left for a national drill competition. The team was the Norwich University Shock Platoon, a precision drill team that is ranked one of the best in the nation.

This was the second time the team competed at the biggest college drill competition in the country. Over 50 schools were in attendance from over 30 states. The Norwich team traveled 30 hours each way by bus to the competition.

The Shock Platoon competed in all events at the Tulane University Mardi Gras National Drill Competition. They placed in five: Individual Exhibition, Platoon Basic, Platoon Inspection, Squad Basic, and Color Guard.

Frances Jackson, a criminal justice major from Plainfield, New Jersey, said that the competition, "...went pretty fair. We didn't have competition with Texas A&M."

The cadets practiced very hard and for a long time in preparation for the biggest competition of the year.

"At school, we practiced hard. When we got out onto the field, we kind of relaxed and went out there to enjoy ourselves instead of winning," Jackson said.

"Considering that if we trained a little bit harder, we would have done better, but we did our best out there."

Michael Pavlick, a political science major from Belton, Missouri, said, "Practices were focused on getting into the game, and we were focused when we got to the competition.

"I was a little concerned when we didn't place in trick, seeing that the [Norwich] trick team down at Cornell beat West Point, and West Point got third at nationals," Pavlick said, adding that he commanded the trick performance at the national competition.

"I couldn't really perform in the routine, but I was still part of the routine. I couldn't ask for anything more than that," Pavlick said.

For many of the cadets, this was their first competition. Unlike other competitions in which Norwich competes, the Tulane drill competition drew schools from all over the country.

The Mardi Gras drill competition was Andrea Bryant's first drill appearance with the shock platoon.

Bryant, a psychology major from Marino Valley, Calif., said she always gets nervous at the competition. "It's natural. That's how I know I am doing things right."

Last year, the Shock Platoon placed tenth out of 50 schools. They placed first in Individual Exhibition and Color Guard in 2003.

But this year, the Shock Platoon placed second out of more than 50 schools, with some 97 teams in the 2004 competition. This is no small feat for a team that has come from a non-competition team to second best in the nation in three years.

"I think the drill competition went pretty well, seeing that we got second in nationals," Pavlick said. "It's a big improvement from last year. Last year, they got tenth place. It's a big jump."

"I think we did pretty good. I'm not really into second place. But out of the nation, that's awesome," Bryant said.

Christopher Cote, a criminal justice major from Cranston, Rhode Island, is in his second year as a member of the Shock Platoon. Cote noticed differences in the team as well as in the way the competition was run this year compared to last year's competition.

"I think the competition was run with some flaws, because they had different judges for every school in the event," he said. "There isn't any consistency to it. The harder judges are going to be providing disadvantages for the more skilled teams."

The Shock Platoon had one of the more difficult performances in the exhibition portion of the competition. Members of the platoon focus on military bearing and discipline while on the drill floor at competition.

"I think we performed pretty well, and judging by what other people said that had seen West Point and some other schools perform that placed over us, said that we were 10 times as good as them," Cote said.

"I definitely think trick was run like a sham," Cote added. "We had the normal little fluke mess-ups, but it was nothing like what we heard other schools had done. Someone from West Point completely lost bearing in the middle of their routine, and they got third overall in trick, so obviously they had some easier judges."

Cote doesn't think that the Shock Platoon made a perfect performance at national competition.

The Norwich Shock Platoon practices routines in preparation for the Mardi Gras drill competition at Tulane University.

"As far as us improving, we need to practice our trick and be more focused when we get out there onto the floor, and relax and go slower," Cote said.

"Compared to last year, our performance was stellar in most everything," Cote said. "Even though the judges were tossed around, I can see why we placed in the things we did."

For the second consecutive year, the Color Guard placed first in the nation. The four-person Color Guard consisted of Brian Hickey, Matthew Angoy, Juan Ortiz, and Anthony Rivera.

"Having seen the color guard on video, I would have to say that we are the same caliber that we were last year. We are national champions twice in a row," Cote said.

This is the first year in many years that the drill team has had its own company. More time can be devoted to practice and training for competition and drill and ceremony.

"The emerging talent with the freshmen is really good. Everybody is improving," Cote said. "If we improve at the rate we did from last year to this year, then we are going to be unbelievable. There is going to be no stopping us."

The Norwich Guidon is a twice-monthly student newspaper distributed at Norwich University. It provides laboratory experience for students in the Communications program. Claims asserted by letter writers, editorials and other articles do not represent the positions of Norwich University. The Norwich Guidon welcomes signed letters to the editor. They should be no longer than 300 words. Unsigned letters will not be printed, but names may be withheld upon worthy request. All letters are subject to editing for length and good taste. Mailing address: The Norwich Guidon, Communications Center, Norwich University, Northfield, VT 056632. www.norwich.edu/guidon. If you have any questions or comments about the paper, please contact Professor Ken Bush at kbush@norwich.edu.