Music echoes through the commons as the members of Varsity Knightline run through the steps to their intricately choreographed hip-hop routine.

As the girls move in unison, you can see the drive in their eyes. They are ready to compete.

And that’s just what they will do, because for the first time in five years, the team will travel over 200 miles to Kansas City to compete in the State competition on Saturday, Feb. 23.

“State is a huge deal for high school dance teams,” coach Heather Hallvax said. “There will be about 100 teams competing in all the divisions and we want our school to be represented in that.”

Since Knightline hasn’t competed in the State competition in several years, Hallvax is anxious for the team to get a taste of what it feels like to compete.
“You get the chance to see other teams and it shows you what else is out there,” Hallvax said. “They also get to bond as a team.”

The girls have been practicing twice a day in preparation for the competition, dancing together every day at 6 a.m. and every afternoon right after school during the weeks leading up to the competition.

“Of course they are not loving it, but they know that to do well they need practice,” Hallvax said. “There is no way we are going all the way to Kansas City and then not trying.”

So far, according to Hallvax the biggest challenge leading up to state has been the fact that several girls missed practice due to illnesses.

“We’ve got girls dropping like flies,” Hallvax said. “It always happens when we need them the most.”

The girls were also faced with a rough decision when they learned that state was being held on the same night as StuCo’s Snowcoming, and they would not be able to attend. They held a team meeting and decided unanimously that they would rather go to state.

“I was really bummed at first because it’s my last one,” senior Amber Friedman said. “But I decided to go to State because I didn’t want to let the team down, we’ve worked so hard.”

The team originally planned on taking three dances to the competition, but then later decided not to take their pom routine. The novelty routine, which has a 40’s military theme, and the hip-hop routine were both recently choreographed by a guest choreographer.

“We’ve been focusing on our novelty and hip-hop routines,” Hallvax said. “Taking three dances is quite a bit. At this point I’d rather focus on two dances and work our way up. I’d rather take two strong dances than three weak.”
While the girls are excited about traveling together to Kansas City, State will also mark the end of the season.

“It’s our last time dancing together,” Friedman said. “It’s bittersweet.”