River Ridge Dance Team at State
The River Ridge Dance Team and their fans were very excited to perform at the State Championship on Saturday in La Crosse. (Photos submitted)
The River Ridge Dance Team poses backstage.
River Ridge Dance Team
performs at State Championship
On Saturday, Feb. 3, the River Ridge Dance Team attended the WACPC State Championship held at the La Crosse Center. The team competed in the Division 5 Pom category and placed 11th in the state for their division.
Qualifying and dancing at state for the dance team is a great accomplishment for such a young group of girls. The team this year consists of two freshmen, five sophomores, and five juniors.
“In the weeks leading up to regionals and state, the girls were very dedicated and they put everything they had into practices. We had practices every night possible and practices were longer than normal. The girls also practiced before they performed at the basketball games,” said Coach Kristin Collins.
The school held a pep rally for the team on Friday afternoon to send the girls off which contained the whole school, parents, other family members, and some fans. The girls received balloons and little goodies as good luck charms along with a big banner with the team’s photo on it from Lindsey Ludvik Photography.
The team traveled to La Crosse on Friday night and stayed at a hotel so that they were able to get a good night’s sleep before competition. Friday night, the team had a team bonding night by going out to eat and just relaxing.
“It is fun to see how well the girls all get along and how easily they can laugh at one another. No matter where we are at or what we are doing they are always laughing and having a great time,” Collins said.
There is nothing more exciting and nerve wracking than walking into state. You first enter the building and walk into a huge room filled with every team competing there for the day. Prior to performing, the team goes through a rotation of warm-ups to get ready for their performance.
“When we were done with our rotation, we were in the hallway outside of the court and we could see our fans wearing our state shirts and holding up signs along with our banner from Lindsey,” said Collins. “The girls were so excited to see everyone there to support them. The team then took on the floor and performed their routine and did an amazing job! To go out there and perform as well as they did for their first time making it to state was unbelievable and I can’t wait to see what the next couple years brings with this team.”
“The girls would like to thank everyone for supporting them and for wishing them luck throughout the week along with Lindsey Ludvik Photography for the banner and bags of goodies. Also a huge thank you to all the parents and fans who came to cheer the girls on on Saturday, it was greatly appreciated,” Collins said.
