A capella group the Acatonics won first place in the 2026 International Championship of High School A Capella (ICHSA) Mid-Atlantic Quarterfinal on Feb. 27, as well as receiving an award for Outstanding Choreography.
The win marks a monumental achievement for Acatonics, particularly compared to their prior year competing. “Our win at quarterfinals was so impactful and such a huge victory for the group, partially because we’re rebounding after last year’s disappointment,” senior Acatonics member Mona Olson said. “To go from not even placing to winning first this year, especially after all the improvements we’ve made and the dedication and understanding shown by even our newest members, it was incredibly rewarding and an experience I’m infinitely grateful to have shared with my current teammates.”
St. Charles High School’s a capella group The Spartones hosted the event, and Severna Park High School’s a capella group, Sol Acapella, also advanced alongside Acatonics, winning second place. “It was so fun to compete alongside other schools,” Olson said. “Everyone performed really well and it was such an honor to be a part of something like this.”
This specific competition is unique in a capella due to its tiered system where students proceed through each competition leading up to finals. “It’s a cool experience for us because a lot of the competitions we do are just one and done, like you compete and its over, whereas this competition is a tiered one, so you have a quarterfinal and then you move on from it, then you can prepare for the next thing, which is the semi final,” Schwartz said. “The big competition is a national competition, so it breaks the country up into regions. We’re in what’s called the Midatlantic region, so its states like Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey.”
With every annual competition comes the making of a new theme, which will influence the set and choice of music and choreography. This year’s theme was Vampire, which the Acatonics set is based on. “The set has to be under 10 minutes, which is about three songs. We learn all the music for it, singing for it, and then there’s movement and choreography that goes along with it,” Schwartz said.
Looking into the future, a capella’s next competition will take place in New Jersey, on Mar. 28. In order to prepare for the upcoming semi finals that Acatonics will compete in, they will have to incorporate feedback from their quarterfinals into preparation for the nearing semi finals. “A lot of semifinals come from the feedback forms that (we) get from the quarterfinals, so when (we) compete the judges fill out forms in the moment that gives feedback on things that they like and also things that we’d improve on. So we take those and we make changes and updates based on that.”
Acatonics will continue to prepare and plan their strategy in the upcoming semi finals, looking to continue their winning streak. “I’m very confident in our team and I’m excited to see where the semi finals will take us,” junior and Acatonics member Nicole Dirk said.
