Saturday, February 21^st, Berkeley’s very own Mello Divas competed in the International Championship of High School A Cappella (ICHSA) regional competition here at Berkeley Preparatory School. The competition featured 10 a cappella groups, including one from North Carolina. For the past five years, the Mello Divas have participated in the ICHSA competition. Each year they devote a significant amount of time to preparing and practicing. After a win in last year’s regional ICHSA competition, the Divas were determined to become two-time champs. Since the start of school in January, they have been training and preparing rigorously. The Divas have taken no days off, and wake up bright and early to rehearse and perfect their songs. On competition day, they were more than ready to show everyone the product of their hard work. In their signature red shoes and red lips, the Mello Divas rocked the stage like never before. The Divas wowed their home-town audience with their killer vocals and terrific choreography. In the words of the master of ceremonies, Amol Dhaliwal, they were “aca-awesome!” The competition was fierce and the top three winners were separated by only 5 points. The Mello Divas received third place out of ten teams.  They also received two special awards, one for best choreography and one for best soloist: Alicia Babin. Although the Divas did not get the first place win they were hoping for, the 11 ladies handled the disappointment in their typical Berkeley “divas” style: practice began again Monday night in preparation for the next competition. The divas are determined to bring home the trophy next year!