Joe Drennan
Sports EditorFour years ago the Forest Lake High School dance team was created. For the first three years the team was considered a fine art activity, but this year things are different. The fall, the Forest Lake school district approved the dance team as a varsity sport.
ìItís a pretty big deal to get dance approved by our district, I think it shows a lot of support for us,î dance team coach Kristin Gustafson said.
This dance team has two seasons, the fall performance season where the team dances at football and soccer games, and the competitive season where they dance at basketball games competing against other dance teams. During the competitive season, the team will be competing in the North West Suburban Conference against teams like Maple Grove, Blaine, and Anoka.
Each team in the NWSC can send three dancers to compete for a spot on the All-Conference team. The Forest Lake dancers have to make up their own dance routine and perform for the coaches to earn a trip to the All-Conference selection.
ìHopefully this year weíll have some strong individual dancers to send,î Gustafson said.
The dance team is in the NWSC instead of the Suburban East Conference like other Forest Lake teams because only three other SEC teams have a dance team. The team will also compete in section 3AAA in an attempt to make it to the state competition.
Dance, like any other varsity sport, has a judging association that trains and hires judges for competitions just like any other sport governed by the Minnesota State High School League.
Building a program
The team has come a long way since its beginnings four years ago, and now they are getting support from the school district.
ìItís a building program and weíre appreciative of the support we get from the school and school board,î Gustafson said. ìIt gives us legitimacy.î
The team practices every day for two hours preparing for competitions. During practices the dancers go over choreography, practice dances, and stretch to ensure no one pulls a muscle.
The team is led by senior captains Tanya Brown, Becky Daschel, and Lindsay Guthrie. All three have been with the team since it began.
ìThis is a good group of seniors that have been with us since the beginning so itís nice to finally have that continuity in the program,î Gustafson said.
Chantel Eischen and Kelsea Griffin are the two dancers who choreograph the dances with the help of Gustafson and assistant coach Nicole Nelson. The rest of the team also helps out, giving ideas of what they might want to try as well.
Dance is not like other team sports. Soccer players or swimmers can cover up a teammateís mistake, but in dance the dancers have to be in complete unison as they dance. If one dancer makes a mistake, that mistake could throw a whole routine off.
ìEach individual dancer has to take responsibility for their performance because it impacts everybody else,î Gustafson said.
Coaches
Head coach Kristin Gustafson danced in high school and college, coached at Lakeville three years ago and has judged for the high school league.
ìIíve just kind of been involved in dance for a long time,î Gustafson said.
Assistant coach Nicole Nelson is a senior at the University of St. Thomas. Nelson has experience having danced for the Minnesota Vikings.
The teamís next competition is Friday at Lakeville at 6:30 p.m.
ìItís a building program and weíre appreciative of the support we get from the school and school board,î Gustafson said. ìIt gives us legitimacy.î
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