Due to openings of events after restrictions last year due to COVID, the poms team is finally able to attend competitions and perform at basketball games. This season, the poms team has had so many fun-filled events, such as Kiddie Camp and the traditional guy girl dance, as well as taking part in multiple IHSA dance competitions. Each event has made great efforts to bring the community together, not only for the basketball spectators to watch, but to show the community what the poms team is all about. 

  Kiddie Camp is when the poms team gets to become leaders for the little ones. These children aged from kids ages 5-14. This event also gives the little ones an inside look at what they could possibly do when they get into the high school level. The children got to practice with the poms team to memorize and perfect a dance that they performed at halftime of a varsity basketball game against Rock Island. This year over 80 girls signed up for the camp. Each year, the team comes up with a theme for the camp and this year they chose “Glamour.” Due to COVID, the camp has been canceled for the past few years. 

  Senior Sydnee Thueson said, “It makes me feel like a role model to all the kids who look up to the older kids. The responsibility it takes to deal with kids in kindergarten through eighth grade takes patience but it is also inspiring to know that I can impact their life positively.” 

  Poms competition season is something that every one of the dancers anticipates.

This was even more true this year as the poms team wasn’t able to compete last year due to Covid. For their dance this year, the team performed a contemporary dance to the song “Ready or Not” by Mischa and “Book” by Chillak. The team has been preparing the routine since October. In this routine, they included 10 dancers that showed off all of their best attributes. To prepare to do their best at sectionals, the team practices for about two to three hours five days a week. The team performed this dance at many competitions in order to get many different opinions from judges. With critiques and hard work, the team was able to place 10th at their sectional competition at Fieldcrest High School. 

  Sophomore Avery VanOosten explains, “Even though we didn’t make it to state, I kept a positive attitude. I loved competing with this team as we work amazing with each other and I can’t wait for the next season. I plan to keep working harder and harder everyday to prepare for next season.”

  “Guy Girl” is a yearly event that the poms team wanted to bring back after they took a year off due to COVID. Each girl finds a guy that is willing to dance with them at the halftime show performance at the boys varsity basketball game. They practice the whole week before the performance. This year the girls decided to do a theme of “old rap songs.”  Junior Chase Ullrich says, “My favorite part of guy girl is the practices and how every practice is an adventure.”

  Over the years, these girls continue these events to bring the students together. Competition season, Guy Girl, and Kiddie Camp bring excitement to the halftime shows at high school basketball games.