Varsity and JV Knightline have already held tryouts. They have already measured their uniforms. They have already met their teammates. At the start of the season, 18 girls will perform


in front of an audience. For 14 of those girls, this will be all too familiar, but for some of the girls, this is their first year on Varsity. One of those girls is sophomore Beth Hillis.
“I think she’s a hard worker and that she’s very dedicated to Knightline,” Varsity coach Kelly Pierce said. “I think she shines when it comes to flexibility and showmanship.”
Hillis has been dancing for eight years and practices between two and three hours everyday.
“I think she’s a great dancer,” Beth’s mother, Louise Hillis, said. “She works really hard at it. I’m just in awe. I’m on pins and needles [when she performs] because I don’t want her to mess up. She just amazes me!”
Not only is making Varsity this year an honor for Hillis, but she also took on extra responsibilities as captain of the JV squad last year.
“I thought she was a great captain,” freshman
Amanda Carlson said. “She had a great personality and she knew what she was doing.”
Tryouts were held April 7, 8 and 9, with a turnout of more than thirty five girls. During tryouts, the girls got into groups and learned several different dances.
“I had fun [at the tryouts] but it was kind of nerve racking,” Beth said.
Once they performed, the judges associated
with each other before revealing what squad they had made. All of her hard work paid off when the judges called her in with the Varsity group.
“I started crying [when I found out I made the team],” Hillis said. “I was just really excited because I really wanted to be on it.”
With the new season comes high hopes along with new challenges.
“[My goal is to] just to be able to improve on my technique,” Hillis said. “Keeping up with the other girls [will probably be the hardest] because they’re all really good, but it will be fun.”
Hillis isn’t the only new member. Carlson and current 8th graders Kelly Gannon and Megan Robben also made the team.
“I am very excited about the talent on the team,” Pierce said. “I’m excited to see what we’ll accomplish.”
With the hopes of a successful season, the girls are already practicing every Sunday at the Underground, a dance studio in St. Charles. Practices will become more frequent during the summer, occurring every Monday through Thursday.
“I hope that she stays with it,” Louise said. “I hope she stays on Knightline to her senior year. ”