When a dancer woke up with a 103-degree fever on the morning of the sectional competition, the poms team scrambled to teach an alternate the choreography.
“We had to … put [an alternate] in the dance, and she had to learn the choreography at the competition,” said senior Alexa Hughes. “So, with that, there’s a little bit more stress around the competition season, because our formations are always changing, our choreography is changing [and] nothing’s 100 percent.”
The team placed eighth at the sectional competition on Jan. 25, two places away from qualifying for state.
“We went from not placing the best to, most recently, only being two spots away from state, which is a big improvement for us,” Hughes said.
Over the summer, a guest choreographer teaches the team its competition dance, which is then performed during the winter competition season, Hughes said.
According to head coach Nicole Collins, the team refines its competition dance throughout the season, incorporating feedback from the guest choreographer and adjusting based on judges’ critiques and point deductions.
At competitions, the team’s performance is evaluated on criteria such as choreography, musicality, difficulty, technique, synchronization, spacing and showmanship.
The team’s dance lasts two minutes and 17 seconds, while competitions can span 10 to 12 hours. When the team is not performing, dancers spend the remaining time waiting, warming up and watching other teams.
In addition to competing in the winter, the team performs routines choreographed by seniors at assemblies during halftime at football, soccer and basketball games.
Seniors work in groups to choreograph dances by selecting songs, blending them into mixes and creating formations, which they then teach to the team two weeks before performing, senior Gracie Tucker said.
“As a choreographer, you kind of take a step up and be more of a leader because it’s your dance, and you want everyone to look good,” Tucker said.
During the fall and winter seasons, the team took the floor at 10 basketball games, four football games and eight soccer games, performing six different dances seniors choreographed themselves.
Choreographing allows the team to express itself freely through music,style and formation choices, Hughes said.
“It’s also just so exciting to be able to go put a dance on the field that you know you made, and has your name behind it,” Hughes said.