Dancing their way to state

Poise, grace, power, passion. Those are just a few words to describe the girls of the PCM Dance Team who are preparing for state competition Dec. 5. The 14 members squad will take the floor for three performances during the competition hoping to impress the judges and wow the crowd with their routines.

“I think this year the team has come together as a group really nicely,” coach Morgan Steenhoek said. “They all are really good about working together and helping each other get better both inside and outside of practice. They also spend some time doing team bonding activities together outside of practice to help build good relationships with each other. I think the best way that they have come together is just really communicating well with each other and motivating each other to be better.”

The three routines the girls will perform include a pom themed Thunder/Lightening, a Don’t Bring Me Down hip hop and a novelty dance centered around Woody’s Roundup. Practicing since school started, the girls have been putting in the hours to make the dances perfect.

“We start practices the same week that school starts, but the girls begin practicing together throughout the months of July and August to begin to prepare for state,” Steenhoek said. “We practice three to four mornings a week at the high school starting at 6 a.m.”

Depending on the dance, different girls are selected to perform. Steenhoek said the decision is based on skills, ability, attitude and effort to dance at the competitive level.

“All of our dancers perform during our recreational performances which also gives us a chance to asses the overall ability to compete at competition,” Steenhoek said.

To prepare for state competition, the team will perform Saturday at Norwalk’s “Rock on to State” show, a pre-state show that features many school throughout Iowa. The team will also be hosing its annual dress rehearsal at 2 p.m. Dec. 1 where the girls will perform each of the routines in full costume. Everyone in the PCM community is invited to go see the girls and cheer them on as they get in one last dress rehearsal before state.

On the big day, the girls will perform at 9:30 a.m., 11 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. at Wells Fargo Arena. For 44 years, the Iowa State Dance and Drill Team Association has hosted the largest state high school dance competition in the nation with more than 250 teams and more than 5,000 dancers performing more than 600 routines throughout the two day event. More than 20 college team from throughout Iowa have also competed at the event the 14 years.

After months of hard work, the girls will get their time to shine on the biggest stage. Following state, the team will perform at selected basketball games and finish the year with the annual show Feb. 29.

Contact Jamee A. Pierson at 641-792-3121 ext. 6534 or jpierson@newtondailynews.com