Thursday, Nov. 19, is a day that will go down in Lancer Nation lore as a day to be celebrated and remembered for North Scott’s first-ever state football championship.
While a parents-only crowd cheered the Lancers to victory in the UNI-Dome, and countless others watched on computer and television screens around Iowa, another state championship battle was playing out 121 miles away in Des Moines’ Wells Fargo Arena.
With a coach confined to her Long Grove home after a recent COVID-19 diagnosis, North Scott’s vaunted Silver Shakers dance team was looking to add to its long list of statewide accomplishments.
The ladies laced in scarlet and silver — performing in a cavernous arena that lacked the usual glitz and electricity of non-pandemic years — took to the state’s grandest stage and once again strutted, twirled and clapped their way to glory.
Thanks to COVID-19, which forced the routines to be judged virtually, the results weren’t announced until a live-stream awards show on Saturday, Dec. 5.
It was worth the wait, and when Lancer coach Lindsay Ambrose gathered her team for a socially distanced watch party in the comfort of her own garage, the show played to rave reviews.
While another state championship may have eluded the Silver Shakers, they took great pride in claiming third-place finishes in both Lyrical and Pom competitions, giving them 19 top-three finishes since 2013.
That’s some pretty heavy lifting, but the accolades don’t stop there.
Because of the ongoing pandemic, the Iowa State Dance Team Association (ISDTA) decided to hold both its solo and team competitions on the same day, and it’s on the individual stage where the Lancers truly stole the spotlight.
The Lancers struck it rich, mining both silver and gold as junior Hannah Bain and sophomore Annika Foit swept the top two spots in Class IX Dance, while seniors Megan Sacia and Olivia Wessel finished tied for 10th.
“When it was announced that Megan and Olivia got 10th, everybody was screaming in excitement,” said Bain. “That was really cool. They then started going down the list, and I was definitely nervous.
“I was holding onto Carolyn Keppy’s hand, and just hoping that maybe I would place. When Annika got second, I was super excited for her, and then I got really nervous. It was like, ‘Uh oh, I either won, or didn’t place at all. Let’s cross our fingers here.’
“When my name was announced, my mouth just dropped open,” she continued. “I was so excited, and my whole team was cheering for me. I felt so loved and appreciated. It was awesome.”
It was a great way to start the party, and things were just getting warmed up.
After finishing seventh with their Lyrical dance a year ago, the Silver Shakers trailed only Bondurant-Farrar and Lewis Central in the nine-team Class II competition.
The three-judge panel gave the Lancers an average score of 94.5, compared to Bondurant-Farrar’s 95.83 and Lewis Central’s 94.67.
Yes, the Silver Shakers came oh-so-close to getting second place.
The same was true with their Class XI Pom performance, where two of the three judges had North Scott scored in second place. However, the average of all three scores left the Lancers trailing Western Dubuque (89.5) and Lewis Central (88.17).
The Silver Shakers finished with a score of 87.33, and easily out-distanced fourth-place Fort Dodge (84.67).
Joining Wessel, Sacia, Bain and Foit on stage for the Lyrical dance were senior Abby Lundvall, sophomores Maddy Gabrielson, Carolyn Keppy and Sydney Westendorf, along with freshmen Reese Crain and Arielle Jaeger.
That same group — with the exception of Crain — were on the floor for the Pom routine. Sophomore Evelyn Shaw and freshman Gracie Henningsen were alternates for both dances.
“I feel like the team did really, really, good,” said Bain. “I think we were all super excited with our placing, and we weren’t disappointed at all. You always strive for first, but we were just thankful that we placed in the top five.”
From top to bottom, this was a true team effort.
“My favorite thing about this team is how close we are,” said Sacia. “We like to joke before we go on stage, or have some not-so-very-serious moments, and other teams don’t seem to have as much fun as we do.
“Other teams seem to try and be super professional, but that’s not us. We know when we need to focus, but we also like to make light of the moment so we don’t put as much pressure on ourselves.”
The pressure was off on the way home, and even though the Lancers didn’t know how they placed, Sacia put it in perspective.
“We were kind of joking that the only positive about it was that since the football team won, we might have gotten a little overlooked with all that excitement,” she said. “Now, we can kind of have our own day to see what we get.”
An unpredictable journey
To fully appreciate the sweet taste of success enjoyed by the Silver Shakers, it’s important to understand the journey. As with everything else in this pandemic-infested year, their season was turned upside down from the very get-go.
Auditions, which are usually held in person each spring, took on a virtual format and weren’t even completed until June 1. The team was finally able to come together on July 1, and the first few weeks were spent developing routines for a possible football season, although that decision was also delayed until August.
“We didn’t even think about state to start with,” said Ambrose. “We waited until the very last minute to see what was going to happen. Basically, the state director just kept telling us to assume it’s going on, and that we’d be moving forward like normal.”
As for the girls, they tried to stay positive.
“The thought of not dancing did cross my mind,” said Wessel, “just because you didn’t know what was going to happen week-to-week, or even day-to-day.
“In a way, the uncertainty made us make better use of our practices, and we really enjoyed all the things that we did get to do, just because we didn’t know if it would be the last time we’d be doing them.”
Lundvall wasn’t worried, and tried to remain hopeful.
“I didn’t want to think negatively about not having a season,” she said. “I really wanted a senior dance season, so when it actually happened, it was really exciting.”
The football season got the green light in early August, which meant there would be halftime routines to perform. Not long after, the ISTDA sent out word that the state competition would be a go, but that it would be held in November, instead of December.
“When they announced it was going to be earlier, we were like, ‘What?’” said Ambrose. “If anything, we were waiting for them to postpone it, and maybe wait until spring.”
By then, the Silver Shakers were already behind schedule in terms of preparing competition routines, and it was decided that they would perform just two, Pom and Lyrical, and take a break from Jazz.
In a normal year, the team would hire a choreographer to develop the Pom routine, while Ambrose would do the other two. This year, that wasn’t an option.
Ambrose and assistant coach Laura Irwin put together the Lyrical dance, almost on the fly. She enlisted the help of seniors Sacia, Wessel and Lundvall to choreograph the Pom routine.
“I think we finished learning the Lyrical dance in early September,” said Ambrose, “and every time we practiced I made them go full-out, and I videotaped them because we just didn’t know if that would be the last time we’d get to dance, and we’d have to submit a video audition.
“I told them to keep their uniforms in their bag or car, and we threw them on a couple of times.”
Because of also having to learn and perform dances for football games, and having school shut down for two weeks because of COVID-19, the Pom routine didn’t even get finished until October, and by then, the state competition was a month away.
Having to learn dances in a shortened amount of time was one challenge, but the Silver Shakers also faced adversity in the fact that the ISTDA also implemented new rules in order to keep dancers safe.
“We had to make sure our formations were all six feet apart,” said Ambrose. “We couldn’t be super close to each other, and we were not allowed to do any partner tricks or lifts. A lot of those are usually super important for visual effects, and keep the dance interesting.
“Later they told us that we could have transitions, and move quickly in a close manner, so we could fluctuate a little bit.”
The Silver Shakers liked the idea of performing just two dances.
“It was nice that Lindsay gave us seniors the option, and we felt that with everything going on, it would be smart to focus on just two,” said Lundvall. “Lyrical and Pom have always been our strongest dances, and something that we all liked to do, especially since you don’t always get the opportunity to do Pom.”
Like every other sport, the Silver Shakers also had to deal with quarantines. Safety was always an issue, and they wore masks and social-distanced at practices. Still, as the state competition approached, the girls were excited and anxious.
“In early October, I thought we were in trouble,” said Ambrose, “but as the month wore on, I honestly really liked how our dances were shaking out.”
The team traveled to Johnston for a competition in late October, and was able to receive virtual critiques. Things were trending upward.
“At that point, I took a deep breath, and thought they were really coming together,” said Ambrose. “I knew that we had two or three more weeks of practice, and I thought we’d be just fine.”
“I was so excited for state,” said Lundvall, “and I just kept really hoping that we’d actually have the opportunity to go to Wells. I didn’t want to do a virtual audition. When we realized it was going to happen, I think that really pushed us the last couple of weeks. We were ready.”
Covid strikes
Of course, what would a state competition be without drama? And the Lancers had plenty of it in the days leading up to the Nov. 19 competition.
Just four days before heading to Des Moines, Ambrose tested positive for Covid.
Her husband, Brodie, had tested positive after contracting it in late October, and Ambrose quarantined for two weeks, and had two negative tests.
“After he got sick, and after we were done quarantining, I thought we were in the clear,” said Lindsay. “Then, on the Sunday morning before state, I woke up and took a drink of my coffee, and I couldn’t taste it at all. I got a rapid test and I tested positive.
“My heart was completely broken. First of all, I was upset that maybe the girls wouldn’t be able to compete, and secondly, if they were, I wouldn’t be there for them, even thought Laura is absolutely awesome.”
The news shook the entire team.
“We got that text on Sunday night, and at that point we didn’t know if we’d be able to go, or if we’d even be able to practice the very next morning,” said Sacia. “That was a very scary text to get.”
“When I got the text, it was like, ‘This is something else that’s going to happen,’” said Lundvall. “Not being able to go definitely crossed my mind, but I still tried to keep my hopes up. I kept telling myself that Lindsay always stands away from us, and we wear masks. I just tried to stay positive.”
Ambrose immediately contacted school officials, and they met later that day to do contact tracing. Fortunately, they gave the girls the green light.
“The amazing thing is that I hadn’t been around the girls the two days prior to me testing positive,” said Ambrose. “Any time we were around, I always had my mask on. I’m so glad that we were always following the safety protocols.”
Ambrose’s symptoms were relatively mild. She was tired, and felt like she had a sinus infection.
“As disappointed as I was to not be going to Des Moines, I was more than happy to take one for the team,” she said. “The silver lining is that it wasn’t one of the girls that got sick. They knew what they needed to do at that point, and they didn’t need me.”
Off to state
As one would expect, things were changing daily as Covid numbers across the state continued to rise. Just two days prior to the event, Gov. Kim Reynolds issued new restrictions, and limited attendance at Wells Fargo Arena to just two spectators per performer.
In North Scott’s case, that meant just 24 fans in the stands when they competed. All spectators were masked, and expected to social distance. Ordinarily, upwards of 10,000 people would attend over the course of three days.
Another change is that the solo competitions were being held on the same day, whereas typically, they were held in late October in Newton. As a result, those dances were held in Hy-Vee Hall, while the teams performed at Wells Fargo.
“The state association did an amazing job,” said Ambrose. “They took into consideration a school’s distance from Des Moines, and tried to schedule them close together so they wouldn’t have to stay in a hotel. They wanted teams to be able to do their dances close together, and then drive home.”
Obviously, the competition lacked the electric atmosphere of previous years.
“Usually, all of the stands are filled with a ton of people, and it’s so loud,” said Wessel. “That wasn’t the case this year. Still, it had the same state feeling when you were on the floor.
“I was a little nervous, but I was more excited to be able to get to dance there. A lot of other teams weren’t able to have that opportunity, and we were able to show all of our hard work.”
“It was a whole different vibe,” said Lundvall. “It wasn’t as loud as normal with the audience cheering, and we couldn’t interact with other teams, or watch them perform. I still think we made the best of the situation, and we still had fun with just our teammates.
“I was very pleased with how we danced. I think we did so good, and I’m just so proud of all of us.”
The six soloists performed first, and then the Lancer girls took the floor for their Lyrical routine, followed by their Pom dance.
Gracie Henningsen, one of the team’s alternates, Face-timed the routines so Ambrose could watch from home.
“My husband, son and I were all screaming in the living room,” said Ambrose. “I thought the girls did amazing. I could not have been happier with their performance, especially considering the circumstances.”
Sacia agreed.
“I think that with the time we had, and considering the circumstances, we took our best dances to state,” said Sacia. “I am very proud of this team, and it was definitely a bittersweet moment walking off that floor for the final time.
“I knew we had done our absolute best, and that it would be my final time on that stage. It was a really good feeling.”
Strange ride home
Ordinarily, the awards are announced late at night, after a long day of dancing. This year, since there was no live judging, and judges viewed videotapes later, the ride home was somewhat anticlimactic.
However, the Lancers saw that as a positive.
“It was a weird feeling,” said Wessel. “Usually you know your placement the same day, but didn’t have that. We just had to be proud of what we did, without knowing the score, and I think that was good.”
“I kind of enjoyed driving home and not knowing the results,” said Lundvall. “I was really proud of how we danced, and I thought we ended on a really good note for the season.
“A placement would have changed the mood for the day, and how we’ll remember that experience. Now, I’ll look back at it and still have happy memories, just because I know we did our best.”
Ambrose, who was 168 miles away, felt the exact same way.
“All the girls got to drive home feeling happy and proud of their performances,” she said. “If we place, it will be amazing, but if not, we had a good experience and made the very, very, very best of the year.
“There were so many schools that ended up having to virtually submit videos, but at least we got to go dance.”