Competing against top schools from across New England, the Dartmouth High School marching band won first prize in all three categories in the Bands of America regional competition at Rutgers University on Oct. 28. 

It’s the second time Dartmouth competed in the show — and the second time the band has won. 

Music Director Ian Flint said the win potentially places them among the top 20 scorers in the country. 

“Overall we’re in pretty good shape,” Flint said. “Right now it’s just continue to build that confidence for the students.”

The win came despite some logistical challenges — a truck broke down on the George Washington Bridge, so students played the preliminary performance without props. 

“They handled the day really well,” Flint said. “They were confident, ready to go.”

Saturday was the first of three challenging competitions in three consecutive weeks for the award-winning band. This weekend, the band heads back to New Jersey to compete at MetLife Stadium in the USBands competition, which it has won 11 times, and six times since 2016. 

The following weekend, from Nov. 9 to 11, the band will head to its first Bands of America Grand National competition in Indianapolis at Lucas Oil Stadium. 

But before any competitions, the marching band will show off its hometown pride at the football team’s first playoff game on Friday, Nov. 3. Rather than a halftime performance, the band will perform its full, in-uniform show after the game at 9 p.m.