With bright stadium lights shining down on the field, the Westwood Warrior Marching Band hit the final pose of their show, Red. Their performance of parts one and two of the show marked the end of the band’s annual March-A-Thon fundraiser on Saturday, Sept. 16 at the Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex.

The band members had a fully scheduled day, with four hours of rehearsal, followed by dinner before the evening’s performance. The event was attended by alumni, sponsors, parents, and other attendees. 

“March-A-Thon was a really good practice for a competition,” Noah Revelett ‘26 said. “It was really special getting to perform for my parents and friends that came back to watch after they graduated.”

During the rehearsal, students worked on their competitive show, Red, mainly focusing on cleaning the forms and running parts one and two without a metronome. 

“The drum majors are basically the heartbeat of the band and keep us in time,” Jillian Riethmiller ‘27 said. “It’s important that we are always watching them to keep time or subdividing when we can’t see the drum major.”

After rehearsal ended, the students had a short amount of time to put on their uniform, put their hair up in neat show buns, and eat dinner. It was the first time students wore their show uniform for the season.

 “I think our first run with uniforms made me envision how great our show is gonna be this year,” Riethmiller said. “When you’re just in regular clothes at rehearsal, you give it your all, but there’s something special about looking the same, and being cohesive as a group that you wouldn’t really get when not in uniform.”

As the stadium began to fill with audience members, seventh and eighth graders from Grisham and Canyon Vista arrived for a brief rehearsal and to meet the high schoolers. This annual tradition allows the younger band students to experience what marching band is and get excited for their future. 

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1. Magic Kingdom:

Ranked at the top of the list, Magic Kingdom is a classic park that brings out childhood nostalgia for many. This is the best park to visit on your first vacation because of the variety of things to do there. From roller coasters like Space Mountain to kid friendly rides like the People Mover, there is something for everyone to enjoy. The People Mover is an especially great option to go on during the fireworks at night, giving you a view of the tremendous show without the crowd as it passes in and out of sight of the castle. This park is most like Disneyland and gives families with younger kids a good place to vacation. Castles and towers can be seen from almost anywhere in the park, creating a beautiful scenic route as you walk around.

     2. Epcot:

Second on the list is Epcot. Often referred to as the permanent world’s fair, Epcot has lots of cuisines from all over the world. As you walk through the park, you’ll find yourself immersed in the culture of countries like Morocco, Japan, Canada, Norway, Italy, and many more. There are a few good rides, but the online queues are very hard to get into, specifically for the ride Cosmic Rewind. There are lots of shopping opportunities in every country that you walk through, with small rides in each country – in Norway there is a Frozen ride, and in France there is a Ratatouille ride. The Frozen ride is probably one of my favorites, with just the right amount of drops but also spectacular music and lights.

    3. Hollywood Studios

Originally known as Disney-MGM Studios, Hollywood Studios is known for its thriller rides. This park is not as good for young families and is best suited for teens or young adults. While the rides can be really fun, there are extremely long lines for most of the rides with the Tower of Terror and Rockin Rollercoaster being the longest. However, I noticed with some rides like the Rockin Rollercoaster, you can leave the ride in pain because of all the twists and turns, so be prepared to have your neck hurt a little. Depending on how much you like adventure and thrill, the wait may be worth it and this may be the perfect park for you.

    4. Animal Kingdom:

While there is really nothing wrong with Animal Kingdom, there is just not as much to do, and you could probably get through the park in half a day. There are a few big rides like Expedition Everest and the Flight of Passage, but the lines can reach up to three hours. I personally feel like both of those rides are worth the wait, especially the Flight of Passage. There even ocean and forest scents that waft throughout the ride and the seats even move to make you feel like you’re actually on a banshee. As for the best time of year to go to Animal Kingdom, I think that it’s better to go in the summer, especially so you can go on the water rides. The park also might not be as interesting if you’re not into animals because there are many animal shows and safaris. 

   5. Disney Springs

Ranked last on the list, Disney Springs is sometimes not even considered a park. It is essentially an outdoor mall for shopping with one ride. One cool thing about Disney Springs though is that they have the Cirque du Soleil which is an immersive acrobatic show. If you have one last day in Orlando to kill, and money to burn, this is the perfect place for you. 

After a close game, the varsity boys soccer team beat the Vista Ridge Rangers in the Warrior Bowl on Friday, March 14. This game closed out the last home game of the season and threw them into the playoffs starting the following week.

“Both Vista and us have already made playoffs so [this game] will be great practice for both teams,” Noah Revelett ‘26 said.

The Warriors began on defense, but after a slow push from the Rangers, they took possession of the ball. After a few excellent passes between players, they nearly scored and the Defense barely edged out the Warriors’ strikers. The game continued with neither team holding onto the ball for long, causing a lot of back and forth gameplay on the field. Almost midway through the half, a penalty kick resulted in Vista’s first point of the night. Warrior goalkeeper Zach Shaddock ‘25 was kept busy with multiple attempted shots from the Rangers, soon leading to Vista’s second goal, ending the first half 2-0.

“The beginning of [the game] was a little rough, but once we got into it, we just kept going, and then we couldn’t be stopped,” Charles Walker ‘27 said. 

After its disappointing start, the Warriors came back in the second half ready to turn the game around, as a few minutes in, Aiden Shen ‘26 sunk in the Warriors’ first goal of the evening. However, Vista matched the Warriors’ energy, scoring their third point of the night right after. Pressure was back on for the Warriors to tie up the game, so they answered as Caleb Fagan ‘25 scored and was followed by Ishaan Saini ‘26, bringing the score 3-3. With a newfound tie, an excited energy took over the Warrior Bowl as both teams were in position to take the win. With ten minutes left in the game, Walker made the go-ahead goal that the team needed, bringing the score to 4-3 and securing the Warriors’ victory.

“We never gave up, we were always fighting for it, and it was just an amazing performance,” Walker said. “We followed the plan that we decided in practice and it worked well.”

The team is now headed to playoffs and will take on Lake Travis on Friday, March 21 at 5pm. 

Celebrating Senior Night, the varsity boys soccer team honored their seniors with an overwhelming victory against the Stony Point Tigers on Friday, March 7. After a high scoring match, the game ended 7-0 with the Warriors far in the lead. Before the game began, each senior on the team was introduced to the crowd as they walked down the field through a line of their teammates, ending up next to their parents.

“Spirits are high [because] it’s senior night. It’s a nice celebration, and both my parents are here,” Jose Fernandez ‘25 said. “[The team has been working on] sticking more to our structure, trusting each other, being the one to make the unselfish decision, [and] less playing for yourself, more for the team, so I’m hoping for a good win tonight.”

Feeling good about their chances against the Tigers, the Warriors kicked off the game and immediately went on offensive. The energy from the crowd and the players themselves was tangible as just two minutes in, Rahul Kuthiala ‘25 scored the first point of the evening. As gameplay continued, Griffin Goss ‘25 stopped the Tigers from advancing down the field with excellent footwork, keeping the Warriors on offense. Twenty minutes into the second half, Kuthiala scored his second goal of the evening as Westwood continued to dominate the field and kept strong control of the ball. Soon, Rodrigo Garcia ‘26 scored the third shot of the game and followed it with another shot on goal. After months of being out of the game with a hand injury, Fernandez joined the gameplay, but not as his original position as goalie, resulting in electrifying cheers from the crowd. Not long after, Valentin Lobos ‘26 had a phenomenal interception, giving the Warriors possession and an opportunity to score. The half ended 3-0 with the Warriors in a confident lead. 

“I think the game went pretty good, it was a good team that we played against,” Kuthiala said. [The hat trick felt really good], it was nice to score, but the most important thing was that we won. [But] it was my first hat trick so it felt nice.”

The second half started uneventfully as the Tigers kicked off again and the Warriors sought to regain their earlier assertiveness. Not long after retaking control, Caleb Fagan ‘25 sunk in another shot for the Warriors. Soon, Kuthiala scored again to complete his hat trick that was met with an instant uproar of excitement from the crowd. With the Warriors’  solid lead, they couldn’t be stopped as Lobos and Noah Revelett ’26 scored the Warriors’ sixth and seventh point with less than 5 minutes left. These goals maked another feat for the Warriors as the stadium erupted in cheer to celebrate Revelett’s first varsity goal, exemplifying the Warriors sheer teamwork and determination towards a collective goal. The game ended in a crushing victory for the Warriors with a final score of 7-0.

“It felt really good scoring. As a defender, I haven’t scored very many goals,” Revelett said. “But it’s always just a surreal feeling when I do score one.”

The Warriors will next face the Vandegrift Vipers on Tuesday, March 11 at Vandegrift High school.