As she changes into her costume and slips on her shoes, JV Drill Team captain Mia Williams tries to settle her nerves. She lines up with the other captains in front of the team. They start walking and a noise of collective tapping follows. While standing outside the gym, Williams prays with her team as they get ready to perform. She walks out to the gym floor and takes position waiting for the song to start. Although the competition felt normal, it would turn out to be a great experience.
“I feel like a different person when I perform,” Williams said. “It’s like I’m in a different world.”
The JV Drill Team participated in a competition on March 7. The officers won the Circle of Champions competition and the team won Grand Champions. Because of a mistake made by the hosts of the competition, the team didn’t know of their wins until the day after they performed.
“It felt amazing to win,” Williams said. “After all of our hard work it was so rewarding.”
Two weeks after the competition, the team found out they were invited to perform in New York City at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. They will perform as an All-Star dance group, which means that all teams who qualified will perform as one.
“I was shocked to find out because I thought they were kidding.,” Williams said. “I started screaming and jumping up and down with the other officers.”
After the officers found out, they informed their dancers of the news. Freshman Jessica Newcomb performed with Williams as one of her dancers.
“I was beyond excited,” Newcomb said. “I was proud of us for getting the opportunity to perform as a JV team.”
The team spends four months practicing their routine for end-of-the-year competitions. They work daily on the same three dances to perfect them in time for competition season.
“At first it’s fun because we just learned the dances, but they get incredibly redundant,” Newcomb said. “You just have to remember why you’re doing them because it all pays off.”
Both varsity and junior varsity will perform at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade in New York on Nov. 26. This will be the first time the drill team has qualified to dance at the parade.
“Being the first team in Legacy history makes me feel honored. I’m ecstatic to represent our school in New York,” Williams said. “[We] are very grateful for this opportunity.”
