Dance squad caps comeback campaign with special state qualification
Kick lines and coordination filled the gym as the West dance team competed at the annual WACPC regional dance competition on Saturday, January 28. The competition consisted of both northern regionals hosted at D.C Everest High School and southern regionals hosted at Watertown High School. The dance team entered evergreen territory as they competed against the northern part of Wisconsin to qualify for state. Despite a challenging season, the team’s drive has motivated them to drill their division one pom and kick routines for nearly nine months.
Head coach Megan Richter recognizes the perseverance demonstrated by her dancers since the beginning of their season, all the way back in June.
“The girls worked their butts off throughout the summer and fall to get here,” she said.
Since the early winter months, the dancers have performed their routines at countless basketball halftime shows and competed at four different invitationals throughout the state in preparation for regionals. Just two weeks prior to regionals, the Wildcat Dance Team placed fifth in their kick routine at the Kaukauna Dance Invite, earning them some brand new hardware for their trophy case.
Sophomore Addie Vaughan realizes the impact the placement had on the productivity of the team.
“I think that placing at previous competitions really gave us the boost of confidence that we needed to perform our best at regionals,” she said.
Even though the dance team had witnessed improvement in their scoring, the daunting competition still weighed heavily on the team. Freshman Summer Zinsli had some anxiety leading up to the big competition.
“Before regionals, I was nervous and on the edge about placing,” she said. “I wasn’t expecting to do so well in pom or get an opportunity to travel to State.”
At the regional competition, the dance team placed tenth overall in kick and a state qualifying ‘wildcard’ score in pom. The wildcard qualification refers to the first place below those qualifying that still earned a score within the range of placing teams - a rare mathematical occurrence. Division I pom remains one of the most cut-throat category divisions in the state of Wisconsin and this led the team to have more hope vested in their kick routine instead.
“Going into regionals, I honestly wasn’t very confident, and definitely not in pom,” junior Mikayla Erickson said. “I didn’t think we would make it to state or place as well as we did.”
The dancers experienced a rollercoaster of emotions as they went from receiving a place that would not have qualified them for state to then hearing the news of their wildcard score. Junior Izzy Seely was turned inside out.
“We ended up placing in pom and are going to state for it,” she said. “It was amazing but shocking at the same time.”
Junior Olivia Heim felt the differences compared to the team's double state qualification during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“State this time around feels more real because, during my freshman year, it wasn’t as exciting since we didn’t actually get a chance to go in person,” she said.
As the team recovers from last year's season of adjustment, this special state qualification symbolizes a resurgence. Senior Abby Stevens calls this the comeback year.
“Our goal was to have a comeback and make it to state and get our name out there, and that’s what we did,” she said. “Going from last place by 70 points to state-bound is definitely considered a comeback year.”
Richter feels this bout of encouragement has positively impacted the environment between teammates.
“After achieving the goal of making it to the state competition, I am hopeful for future seasons that the team will strive to return year after year,” she said. “For this season, I think it will increase camaraderie and we can get closer as a team.”
The dance team will continue to practice their routines so they can hang in there with the best of the best. Richter is incredibly pleased with her team’s accomplishments.
“To say I’m proud of these girls is an understatement,” she said. “They amaze me with their abilities every day, and I can’t wait to see where the future takes these beautiful girls.”
by Morgan Reitz
Published on Febuary 21, 2023
Oshkosh West Index volume 119 Issue V