Local high school cheer and dance teams competed in the KHSAA state championships over the weekend and will not set their sights on UCA Nationals in February.
DCHS
The Daviess County dance team took 2nd place in the Hip Hop Division and 4th overall in the Big Game Day Division.
“This was the best they did thus far in the season,” said Head Coach Jacylyn Simpson. “They had the best mindset going in and I couldn’t be prouder. We started doing two-a-day workouts to prepare for state, and it helped them tremendously. Next year we hope to come back for the gold because our determination is higher than ever to get a state title.”
Daviess County cheer placed 4th in the Big Game Day Division and 15th in the All-Girls Small Division. Head Coach Kitty Jones said the team started out nervous, but eventually got into their rhythm to bring home the 4th-place finish.
“I am overall pleased with our performances; we brought a lot of energy with a very creative routine,” she said. “We did come out a little nervous, but felt they fell into place once they got going. Last year we graduated 13 seniors, and I feel as if our newbies have fallen right into place. We improved our performance for our 2.5 traditional team as well, increasing our score some, and were able to build some more confidence. As a whole, we immediately shifted our focus to Nationals which is in February, with plans to add a little more difficulty and extreme cleaning to our routines overall. We are not done yet.”
OHS
Owensboro cheer placed 7th overall in the Coed-Large Division and 13th in the All-Girls Medium Division. Head Coach Heather Cavitt said the team overall was better than they were in their recent competitions, and placing 7th at state was a great send-off for the seniors on the team.
“We are pleased with our performance from yesterday,” she said. “We were better than we were at KHSAA regional and at the UCA qualifier for nationals. That’s always the goal, to be better than you were in the competition before. I have 5 seniors (2 boys and 3 girls) so it was a positive experience to end their KHSAA cheer career on. Now, we get back to work to get ready for the National High School Cheer Championship in February.”
AHS
Apollo cheer placed 9th overall in the Coed-Large Division. Head Coach Wes Nall said he’s proud of the team’s effort given how difficult it is for small coed teams to have high placements in the competition. However, they will be placed in a small-coed-specific division during Nationals in February.
“We put on an excellent show for a team with one male athlete competing against teams with up to 12 male athletes,” he said. “A few years back, the coed division was split between small coed and large coed. Since they have combined the division, no team with less than 7 males has won. So, it’s a rough battleground for small coed teams. Eli Smith, our one male athlete, is phenomenal. Our ladies have upped their game tremendously this year and brought a very high skill level to the floor.”
The Apollo dance team 17th overall in the Hip Hop Division and 18th overall in the Pom Division. Head coach Kate Bowley said the team put in a lot of work leading up to the competition, and it helped them top their regional performances.
“We put in a lot of work the week before the competition and it showed in our performances,” he said. “While it may not have ended as we had hoped, I could not be more proud of the girls and how dedicated they are. They performed significantly better at state than they did at our regional competition, and I just know that we are going to go up from here.”
OCHS
The Owensboro Catholic dance team placed 14th in the Pom Division. Head coach Miranda Austin said she is proud of the team considering their late start to the season.
“As a new head coach and for not forming a team until after summer was over, which is about 5 months late, I’m very proud of them and their dedication,” she said.
