FC's JROTC earns top honors in two events

At 4 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 8, you could find most people still in bed, but if you were looking for Franklin County’s JROTC Drill Team, they were at the Armory looking spick and span, ready to board the bus and make the trek to Terry High School.

Almost three months of purposeful training was about to be put to the test in the team’s very first drill meet of the year.

You could hear chatter before setting out, on the bus and between events, but when “fall in” was called you could hear a pin drop as hands snapped to each cadet’s sides, heads swiveled to face front and eyes stayed sharp.

As the event progressed, every second of training paid off as events were clean and well-performed.

The judges were kind as were cadets from other schools.

When every event was finished, Franklin County’s cadets waited patiently for the results, and, after a quick drill activity, FC’s final results were announced:

• Unarmed Squad, first place.

• Unarmed Exhibition, first place.

• Armed Squad, first place.

• Armed Exhibition, first place.

• Color Guard, first place.

• Armed Platoon, first place.

Franklin County finished as the overall winner of the competition in Terry.

Commanders Celeste Collins, Kenadie Fleming, Arthur Atterberry, Ayden Harrell, Arihanna Coleman and Savannah Arnold received their first-place trophies with humility.

When all of the trophies were awarded, the group gathered for a photo to commemorate their first victory of the season.

Fast forward to Saturday, Oct. 22, and it was time to repeat the process in Ocean Springs.

Not ones to let the victory two weeks earlier go to their heads, the FHS Drill Team continued its intense practices in hopes of a repeat performance.

The cadets approached the challenge with the same discipline and focus and, once again, it paid off for the Bulldog Battalion.

FC’s results from the Ocean Springs competition included:

• Male Unarmed Squad, second place.

• Unarmed Exhibition, second place.

• Unarmed Platoon, second place.

• Male Armed Squad, first place.

• Female Armed Squad, first place.

• Armed Exhibition, first place.

• Female Color Guard, first place.

• Armed Platoon, first place.

Franklin County finished with a 2-for-2 record by claiming overall winner honors at that competition.