There were gaping mouths and heavy yawns by the time the crew arrived at Denver International for its early morning flight.

In a sudden reversal, there was plenty of excitement and energy dancing around the packed concourse of Lambert Airport in St. Louis, where everyone awaited patiently for the connector flight that would bring them one final step closer to their final destination.

There was screaming, clapping and even singing inside the plane as it touched down in Little Rock as the group’s volume continued to increase with one final leg of the trip left to complete.

After a marathon’s worth of traveling, a bus, the second of the day, pulled up to the Arlington Hotel in downtown, rain-soaked Hot Springs, Ark., and the group’s journey was finally over.

Yet, at the same time, it had just begun.

“I thought it was good preparation for how exhausting this tournament is going to be for us, especially playing for two teams over the course of several days,” said Shawna Taets, a freshman from Austin, Texas, who plays the French horn.

After some members went on a stroll down Bathhouse Row, the weather permitted the band to finally display its pep, unleashing its wide array of sounds on the quaint, natural city.

The day’s events concluded in downtown Hot Springs, where after two hours of preparation and eating, the band performed its own routine and joined other Sun Belt Conference student bands in an ensemble that certainly packed its fair share of noise.

Some notable appearances were from the Middle Tennessee pep band, who performed only three days after the premature death of guard Tina Stewart, who was fatally stabbed in her apartment in Murfreesboro, TN Wednesday morning.

The group from Middle Tennessee performed along with student bands from Louisiana Lafayette, South Alabama, Western Kentucky, Troy, Arkansas State, Arkansas Little-Rock and North Texas.

Before the groups played together as ensemble they were addressed by SBC commissioner Wright Waters, who told the band to come together in adversity and rally around one another in the coming days.

“It was inspiring sitting next to MTU band members during the group performance,” said Taets. “Pep bands don’t usually compete against one another, so there is no need to show anything but sympathy. I’m glad we could share the moment with them.”

While there is little doubt that the members of the Middle Tennessee community have shared a rough couple days together, the DU band was there to lend a helping hand, despite going through a gauntlet of mental and physical demands.

“I’ve never done anything like this before,” said sophomore Adam Rosen, a tenor saxophone player from St. Louis. “In fact, I haven’t done a lot with music lately so I’m excited to focus on the sax for these next few days, before coming I debated whether or not it would be worth it, but I think it is.”

In total, the group spent a little more than eight hours traveling on the road and by air, while dedicating a little under four hours to honing their crafts to celebrate their season-long contribution to both the men’s and women’s basketball games.

One of the more veteran members of the group, junior David Fogle, the group’s only tuba player, said that the weekend that lies ahead isn’t all about fun, rather what you take out of it individually.

“It’s not incredibly fun for us, however it’s totally rewarding which makes it worth your while,” said Fogle. “In high school we had a similar experience, so this isn’t the first time for me.”

In addition, the pep band rally was an event that served as preparation for tomorrow’s men’s basketball game at Summit Arena, where the Pioneers will take on No. 6-seeded

Florida International at 7:45 p.m.

Although there is an entire weekend of games still to be played, the first day of the student trip was jam-packed with excitement, noise and energy that the question has to be asked, how much spirit is still left in this lively bunch of instrument-toting musicians and sparkling sideline cheerers have left to give?

The answer: a lot.

“The buses were pretty active and we are just really excited to get here, it was exhausting no doubt, but we still have to pump up both teams,” said Taets.

The weekend has just begun, and so has the fun in Hot Springs.

Stay tuned for further coverage of the weekend’s events as well as live in-game blogging at duclarion.com.