Ship’s Got Talent finished its final round Wednesday, April 1, with several laughs and cheers.

The room was buzzing with excitement as the seats filled quickly. Many of the different groups sat, cheering on their friends as the night rolled on, hoping that the judges and crowd would pick their friend to win.

The night started off with special guest Dakaboom, an Acapella comedy duo that travels the country, performing stand-up and sketch comedy. To start off the night, the group remixed “Friend Like Me” from the Disney movie “Aladdin.”

This then went into the first two contestant performances of the night. Jeremy Flick and Bryanna Beamer both sang their renditions of two popular songs, “Elastic Heart” by Sia and “Move” by Little Mix. Flick made a special impression on the judges, making judge Traci Moyer cry from his rendition of “Elastic Heart.”

These were only the start of the performances, since each contestant had to prepare two acts for the night.

Dakaboom then returned, performing between each set of two performers. For this portion, Dakaboom sang about its frequently asked questions. Some of the questions ranged from where the group came from to what its favorite sequel was, making the crowd laugh when the group’s relationship status came up.

It was then Jake Doyle and Brad Barkdoll’s turn. Doyle stuck to his previous performances and used his guitar to keep the crowd satisfied while Barkdoll used a track — he used the stage to his full advantage.

Following this pattern, the night proceeded with a Dakadoom set after Doyle and Barkdoll were finished. Then it was Flick and Beamer’s turn once more. Flick surprised the crowd with, instead of singing, he did a choreographed dance.

With his all black attire, his colorful sneakers accentuated his feet. There were several cheers as he glided across the stage, mostly from the females in the crowd. The judges were also impressed, commenting on how he really tried to change it up each week and that the final round was no exception.

Beamer then followed with an original song titled, “Quicksand.” She prefaced the song with a disclaimer that she had never performed an original song live, which made some cheer her on loudly, even as she sang. The judges’ biggest comments were that they “felt her soul.”

This was then followed up by the final performances for Barkdoll and Doyle. Doyle also performed an original song for his final piece titled, “Being Young.” This was about how it feels to become an adult, Doyle said. This song helped him get through his freshman year at college when he felt very alone, wishing he could go back to simpler times. Barkdoll finished with “Raging Fire” by Phillip Phillips. The crowd roared as they watched his hands fly across the strings.

Dakaboom then returned while the voting commenced. The group started playing Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin,’” but to the crowd’s dismay, stopped part of the way through. While the group had another act planned, the crowd seemed genuinely upset as to why it would stop in the middle of the song.

Once the votes were tallied and the contestants were brought back onto stage, it was announced that Barkdoll was the winner. He took the trophy with a huge smile on his face, especially since he was also the winner of the $300 prize.

Afterward, Barkdoll said that auditioning for Ship’s Got Talent was a last minute decision. He had just gotten back from Air Force training and there was a half an hour left to audition. He said he did not really expect to win but was happy all the same.

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