Students on the Pasco High School dance team are walking a little taller after taking home a national title.
The Dance Team Union national championships are held in early February in Orlando. The competition includes numerous dance categories, including hip-hop, jazz, pom dancing, open categories and more. Each category had winners in three divisions, small, medium and large, reflecting the team’s size.
The Pasco team competed in the pom and hip-hop dance categories. Eight students made the trip to Florida, six were part of the hip-hop dance performance and seven in pom. Both teams competed in the small division. The pom performers took eighth place, and hip-hop won the top spot.
“I’m very proud of them all,” team coach Rebecca, or Becca, Schwan told the Herald in a recent interview.
Pasco High School dance team
Schwan has been with the team for 27 years, and she recalls it starting up within the decade prior to her joining. She believes the last time they won a national title was back around this time.
But the team has been putting in the work for some time, and their resume is nothing short of impressive. They’ve won numerous state championships, and even represented Team USA last year at the World Hip Hop Dance Championship, where they were the only U.S. team to advance to semifinals.
Their dedication is relentless, as they train year-round. While they do get breaks, usually about a week per month, this makes the team a larger commitment than other sports.
“They put in a lot of work and time, they’re very dedicated,” said PHS Principal Veronica Machado, who joked the students are always around school.
The dance team is made up of students of various ages and skill levels. Their main focus through much of the year is state competitions, with the final state championship held in March.
The team will follow state championships with a trip to California to try and qualify for Worlds, and they’re working on a potential additional trip to Hawaii. The dancers fund the trips themselves, through community events such as dance classes and spaghetti feeds, and local support like restaurant takeovers and business sponsorships.
At any given time, they’re working on a handful of routines that are evolved throughout the year. While choreography is led by Schwan, the dancers use their creativity and personalities to develop narratives that fit the routine. The teenagers stick to these narratives, and use them to build on the routine’s foundation with each performance, making each one unique.
They also started performing at concerts, and have been traveling with Kash & King. The team has already shared stages with big artists like Lil Wayne and Too $hort.
National championships
This year was Pasco’s first appearance at the Dance Team Union championships, which spanned across an entire weekend.
On the Saturday of the competition weekend, preliminaries were held for the various categories. Depending on a team’s performance, there’s a chance you can advance all the way to the finals during the preliminaries. If you’re good enough, you can bypass the semifinals and save your energy.
Both Pasco teams advanced through to the finals after their preliminary performance.
Schwan emphasized how proud she was of all her dancers for their performances over the weekend.
In the pom category, 55 teams competed in the small division. Pasco was in second place at the end of the first day, and ultimately took eighth place.
The six Pasco dancers who competed in the hip-hop category were sophomores Kiara Hernandez and Alynah Hernandez, juniors Anaiah Charles and Cassius Blasdel, and seniors Madelyn Miller and Mariah Guzman.
The team used the routine they agreed was their strongest, saying it transforms their weaknesses into strengths.
After the final performance, the six students waited in anticipation for their ranking. The dancers all said they had a lot going through their heads as the winners were announced.
The top 20 teams were announced, and with each number closer to one, the more their minds raced.
The team laughed with their coach remembering how many schools across the competition started with the letter P, adding to their anxieties in the moment.
But when they got to number one, it still hadn’t set in. For many of them, it wasn’t real until they got the trophy, and the realization hit.
The trophy, which the dancers joked is the same size as one of their teammates, is still en route to the school. They all received rings and jackets to commemorate the win.
‘The Battle’
As if the win wasn’t enough distinction, the competition has an exclusive element referred to as The Battle. The event’s organizers and judges select just three teams to represent each category for an invite-only curated showcase.
Pasco got the invite around midnight, and had to confirm they were willing to perform the routine again.
Normally, the three teams for each category consist of one large team, one medium team, and one small team, but Schwan told the Herald there were some complications securing a medium team. Even though they were up against two large teams, the Pasco team secured another win at The Battle.
According to Schwan, they were the first team from Washington to ever be invited to The Battle, and followed up that distinction by becoming the first Washington team to win their category in that competition.
“The Battle was really special for us,” Blasdel said during the group interview.
After a weekend packed full of anticipation, elation and constant movement, the teenagers spent their trip home resting.
Lasting impacts
While the schedule can make dance a greater commitment than other sports, it comes with its benefits. The dance team has become a tight knit group through their time together.
They agreed that other teams with designated off seasons tend to drift apart when they aren’t playing together. But they stay close all year, sharing the same goals and passions when it comes to dance.
“We’re so much like a family, because we’ve seen each other at our lowest, and we’ve seen each other at our highest,” Miller said. “We can always read each other.”
The dancers praised their coach for her guidance in dance and as a role model to the teenagers.
“Becca is our great coach, coming into the program, she has helped us all,” Blasdel said. “She’s pushed us all to be better.”
Schwan said it’s been very rewarding to see the team grow, from their accomplishments to their community engagement, from their bond as best friends to the skills they’ve gained.
Principal Machado noted how many aspects the team does well in, from their athleticism to their teamwork, from their individual academic performances to the way the group engages with the community.
“They’re representing Pasco High at the highest level,” she said.
The Pasco School District Community Outreach Supervisor, Gracie Valle-Chimal, said she hears this love from the community firsthand.
“They make Pasco shine,” Valle-Chimal said.
Machado also noted how many parents and volunteers have contributed to the team’s success.
“Pasco High is showing up,” she emphasized.
This support follows them to every performance, with a crowd of family, friends and volunteers each time they’re on stage, according to Machado. And as they perform, they always captivate the rest of the crowd.
“They have a very bright future,” the principal said.
They’re all planning to continue their dance careers, whether that may mean college, professional teams, stage performance or any of the other numerous opportunities for talented dancers.
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