State Spirit: Lovell sweeps Class 3A dance competition

The State Spirit championship hardware keeps flowing from Casper.

Both Lovell High School’s jazz and hip hop dance teams captured the Class 3A championship at the Wyoming State Spirit Competition Friday at the Ford Wyoming Center in Casper. Lovell repeated as champions in the Hip Hop Dance category, topping a field of seven team, and LHS also won the Jazz Dance competition by topping a field of four.

The Lovell cheer team was seeking a four-peat and placed fifth out of 11 teams in the 3A Gameday division.

In 3A Hip Hop Dance, the Lovell team produced a score of 74.100 with no deductions. Judges rated Lovell 29.340 in execution, 29.950 in choreography and 14.800 in projection, and the overall score of 74.100 topped second-place Torrington by a point and a half. Torrington placed second with a score of 72.825, followed by Lyman at 71.925, Cokeville 71.450, Kemmerer 69.075, Powell 65.275 and Rawlins 64.275.

In 3A Jazz Dance, Lovell topped the field with a score of 72.775, edging Torrington, which scored 72.600, with a 1-point deduction costing the Trailblazers. Lyman placed third with a score of 68.425, Powell fourth at 65.700.

“This has been such an incredibly exciting and meaningful moment for our team,” head coach Madison Hecker said. “As a first-year coach, it meant so much to see the team believe in the process and in each other, and to know that I was able to lead them in a way that helped them succeed. I feel so fortunate to coach such a hardworking, talented group of girls and to be able to build something special with them.

“These athletes were so deserving of this win. They put in countless hours, run throughs and so much extra work outside of practice to get to this level. Our practices are two hours long, and we have them often, and many of these dancers also participate in cheer, other sports and school activities. That leads to very long days and late nights for these athletes, and they handled it with very little complaint and a lot of determination and commitment to the team.”

It all came together in both divisions for the Bulldogs, Hecker said.

“By the time they walked onto the state floor, we had done all the cleaning and perfecting that we could, so I told them the only thing left to do was to show the judges how much they loved being there,” she said. “And they absolutely did. Sitting front row and watching them perform, I was so proud. I could feel the energy in the room shift when they took the floor. I knew they had it in them, and once they performed like that, I knew they knew it, too.

“This was also a big moment for our program. Our dance team has never taken both jazz and hip hop at the same competition before, and since the 3A division added both categories in 2014, Lovell has only won jazz once, back in 2015. To accomplish a sweep like this is something these kids will always remember.”

The Lovell competition team, with all members competing in both the hip hop and jazz routines, includes senior Ella Spanier; juniors Avery Wardell, Caitlyn Allen, Candace Walker and Paige Spenny; sophomores Addie Weber, Bella Martinez, Juliette Caldwell and Kelce Winterholler; and freshman Kaycie Marberry.

Both teams were in excellent form, Hecker said.

“In our jazz routine, the judges really loved the overall performance, the song choice and the way the costume moved with the choreography,” she said. “That song, ‘Don’t Stop Me Now,’ was actually something I picked out right after I was offered the coaching position, so seeing that vision come to life on the state floor was incredibly special. The dancers brought strong technique and emotional connection to the music, which really helped the routine stand out.

“In hip hop, the judges commented on how in sync the girls were, along with the sparkly costume, the fun walk through section featuring our senior, Ella Spanier, and our headspring section, which was especially rewarding because those dancers spent so much time practicing and perfecting that skill.

“I couldn’t be prouder of this team and what they accomplished.”

Cheer team

The Lovell cheer team placed fifth in the 3A Gameday division with a score of 82.100. The team’s base score was 84.100, third out of 11 teams, but the team lost 2 points on deductions. Judges rated Lovell 30.000 in crowd leading, 25.800 in band chant, second out of 11 teams, and 28.300 in fight song, the top score in the field.

Douglas won the title with a score of 86.500, followed by Mountain View at 84.600 and Powell and Cody, tied at 83.200.

Members of the competition cheer team are seniors Spanier, Haley Sanders, Atlee Sanders, Ashley Mangus, Savannah Prentiss, Angela Lopez, Lynn Marchant, Chase Crosby, Jay Mayes and Damian Wagner; juniors Lindsey Scheid-Leonhardt, Wardell, Kylie Carabay, Jaelen Mayes, Allen and Walker; sophomores Weber, Martinez and Lydia Craw (alternate); and freshmen Kendra Allen, Bostyn Tippetts and Alynna Monterde (alternate).

“I am so incredibly proud of our team,” coach Nicole Hendershot said. “Our main goal was to leave it all on the mat, and they did just that. They did everything we practiced, performed with precision, high energy and joy, and did exactly what we set out to do.

“We had the highest fight song score of the whole competition across all divisions, which is a testament to their incredible performance. Our crowd leading cheer portion was where we took a hit in our scoring. I implemented changes in choreography based on the comments from judges from our past few years of competition, and unfortunately it didn’t hit for the judge this year. The team executed the routine well and should be very proud of their performance.

“Of course, the results aren’t what we hoped for, but the competition is just a single snapshot in time. Mistakes happen, and judging is subjective, but they did everything we had in our control and left it all on the mat.”