This year at the 2018 USA Dance Nationals at the Anaheim Convention Center, the CAHS Varsity Dance came home with a spectacular win, earning a National Title in Large Jazz and third place in Large Dance/Pom.

The Dance team qualified into nationals earlier in this year, with four of their five dances qualifying for a higher division. “All these national competitions had 80-plus schools there representing several states nationwide,” senior dancer Daryl Goh said.

Lots of time and preparation has gone into perfecting this year’s routines for nationals. They performed five total routines, three all-team routines and two select-group routines: Small Lyrical, Small Jazz, Large Jazz, Large Hip-Hop and Pom.

“We learned our first competition routine choreography for this year in August of 2017,” Goh said. “USA Nationals was familiar, but, as at any competition, you feel the pressure of representing your school and team well. We did so many things to try to eliminate any outside factors that could hinder us from performing our best at Nationals, but it was worth it.”

“It was super fun! It was definitely stressful before we performed but it was super fun because I got to be with my team and it was a whole team bonding event” freshman Lillian Eckstein said.

In describing their repertoire, Goh added, “Routines were either a mix of music that was either created by the choreographer or a song that was picked by the choreographer, but pom was a mix that I actually picked. Each year has a small theme, and I … chose the theme … ‘A Little Party Never Killed Nobody’ … Our large jazz song, ‘Don’t Be So Hard On Yourself,’ actually grew to have a lot of meaning for the team throughout the season and now is a song so near and dear to us.”

The dance team worked hard to stay focused this year when dealing with injuries and health issues. “One of our dancers this year became really sick in the middle of the year and had to actually leave the team so she could get better. It was really hard to see her suffer through it but it was so nice to see her get help and recover,” Goh said.

“It was super fun! It was definitely stressful before we performed but … I got to be with my team and it was a whole team bonding event” freshman Lillian Eckstein said.

After performing, members of the Dance team were overjoyed with their results. “It was super shocking, because it is very hard to win at nationals, so we were super shocked and honored,” Eckstein said.

She felt privileged to get the opportunity to present the team’s skills and hard work. “I get to be here, I get to compete, and I get to do it with my dance family,” Eckstein said.

This competition has allowed the girls to meet new people, expand their skills and make memories that last forever. “I’ve made so many friends from other schools … [and] areas that I continue to keep in touch with, and memories that cannot be described in words,” Goh said.

Not only was this victory made possible because of the team’s skill and technique, but also because of their teamwork and bonding experiences. This group has become not just a team, but a family for the members. “We’ve had a lot of emotional things happen to us — this year especially — but that has only brought us closer as a team and unit. I feel so incredibly close to my team,” Goh said.

Dance provides an escape for girls on the team. “Some days, dance is legitimately the thing that gets me through the day and being able to see my team after an exhausting day is always worth it,” Goh said. “We’ve laughed until we cried as a team, and cried until we laughed as a team, and every emotion in between.”