Lancer Dancer Updates: The dance team prepares for Nationals on Feb. 11

Current Placement

• Dance teams are typically not ranked, however, the varsity Lancer Dancer placed first at the state championships in November. 
  

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Key Performers

• Junior varsity Captains- Juniors Anne Bowser, Gretchen Anast and Caroline Hoffman
• Varsity Captains- Seniors Macy Fore, Lyla Weeks and Jane Rasmussen 

“I think for sure our varsity captains and seniors too, in general, have really just stepped up their leadership,” Head Coach Alexis Close said. “I mean, they were already great leaders to begin with, but I think it's really neat to watch them create their own traditions on the way to nationals and help get the team get where they know it can be.”  

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Upcoming Competitions

• The varsity Lancer Dancers are competing at the National Dance Alliance Varsity High school Nationals in Orlando, Florida from Feb. 11 to Feb. 16. The competition is over a span of three days, the semi finals are on Saturday, Feb. 14 and Sunday, Feb. 15 if they qualify for finals they will compete on Monday. They will compete against 150 other teams across nearly 30 states.

“We are really trying to drill the technique that's in our routines,” Close said. “The very specific turn sequences that we have, there's jumps that we have in, and lifts. We have a lot of lifts this year, and especially in hip-hop we have a bunch more than we normally do.”

• Basketball games have been serving as good performance practice.
  

“Basketball season actually really helps us prepare, because that's when we get to perform everything,” Close said. “We say basketball games are always like our dress rehearsals because we get the chance to practice in front of people, and it's usually a very forgiving crowd, and we are not being judged."

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Strengths

According to Coach Close both varsity and JV have demonstrated great dedication and passion for Lancer Dancer which has improved their performance.

Varsity has really focused on teamwork as they prepare for Nationals.

“I think their focus, their work ethic, they are a really connected team,” Close said. “They work really well together. And I feel like everybody's on the same page when it comes to how much work they want to put in to get ready for Nationals, and at local competitions too.”

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Weaknesses

Close does not view the team as having weaknesses, instead she views it as them needing to know how to play to their strengths. However, they are currently trying to work on stamina and endurance with the little time they have left before nationals.

“I think the hardest, the most challenging thing we have is that we never feel like we never have enough time,” Close said “It just always keeps getting closer and closer and we could use even more time than we actually have.”

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Injuries

• There have been no current injuries on both teams. However, Close predicts minor injuries to arise from muscle overuse as Nationals nears.

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Other

• Former University of Kansas dance team member, Tim Flattery, has been working with the team.

“I always think it's so important to bring in extra sets of eyes that aren't mine because I think at some point my eyes go cross-eyed when I've been looking at the same dance for so long,” Close said.

• Some of the seniors are preparing to audition for college dance teams.
• Senior Macy Fore is considering auditioning for the University of Kansas Dance Team and seniors Jane Rasmussen and Lyla Weeks are unsure due to the stress it adds to their senior year.