Pom attended Dance Team Union (DTU) nationals this past weekend in Orlando, Fla., where the team placed 8th in Small JV Jazz and 9th in Spirit Showdown.
The team took five dances to nationals including: Small JV Jazz, Spirit Showdown, Varsity Lyrical, Medium Varsity Jazz and Varsity Hip Hop.
DTU takes place once a year and brings together high school pom and dance teams from across the country. Teams spend the weekend competing against each other and taking masterclasses. They compete in semi-finals on the first days and the top teams move onto finals on the last day.
“This is one of the largest national competitions for the dance team world,” Head Coach Tasha Hinex said. “There are easily over 300 teams who compete at DTU nationals.”
The team is dedicated to preparing for their competitions. The team practices twice a week for an hour and a half each day beginning in August because they use dances from past competitions for nationals.
“This preparation is similar to state preparation, but it’s adding more elements or adjusting things that aren’t working so we can put the best version of our routines on the floor,” Hines said.
Junior Ashley Watts described preparation for nationals as a lot of hard work and drilling the dances. The team focused on dedication and mindset in order to put their best foot forward.
“We read this book every practice, which always makes us closer as a team, and it’s how to be champions,” Watts says “It talks about unity, and being on time, and how you have to persevere through the hard times.”
This preparation and unified mindset lead into how the team spends its time at the competition. The dancers go in with open minds and are prepared to do their best.
“Everything is a reset,” Watts said. “We wash away the old times that we performed, and we always hype each other up.”
Nationals are not only about winning. Senior Cali Williams said that this competition can help the team grow closer.
“It’s just really like a different perspective, like living with someone basically for a few days, and seeing how they prepare for things, and helping each other,” Williams said.
Hinex as well as assistant coach Grace Sanchez aim to help set their team up for success.
“This year we have goals set for each routine, and we will see how it goes,” Hinex said. “Our focus has been on small wins and controlling what we control.”
