VIDEO: HMS Idol Contestants Perform Top-40 Show-Stoppers

A near-capacity crowd packed the auditorium on Friday night for a middle school show. Over 80 students at Hurley Middle School auditioned for the HMS Idol competition, and on Friday, the final 13 competed on stage.

"Every year, it gets harder and harder every year," said HMS health teacher and idol founder Terri Penha  of the difficult task of eliminating contestants throughout the competition. "That's why I don't like to judge," added Penha, who organized the event but left the judging to others.

The judges included Tammi Miller, Hilda Pelicano, Deb Souto and Mary Westcoat from HMS. Assisting with the judging this year was a special guest. Irving Washington III, best known for his work as a member of the group Portrait, but also an award winning producer, appeared as a guest judge. Mr. Washington also did a small performance of his own.

Before Nick Albuquerque could begin singing Mike Posner's "Cooler Than Me," emcees Marco Correia and Michael Sandstrom told the crowd that it was Nick's birthday. They brought out Washington who sang Happy Birthday to Nick, which seemed to give him a lift for his performance.

While hits by Taylor Swift were the most popular selections by the contestants, none who chose Swift's music made the final three. At the end of the night, Elisabeth Ransom placed third for her rendition of Carrie Underwood's "I'll Stand By You."

Monica Maziarz sang Kelly Clarkson's "Behind These Hazel Eyes," which was good for a second place finish. But the clear cut winner was Abbie Hopkins' performance of Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun."

"It was unanimous," admitted judge Westcoat of the breakdown of the finalists and Hopkins' win. The judge also echoed Penha's sentiments about the talent on hand. "The talent is getting better every year. I give them a ton of credit, to get up there at their age and perform like that."

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