Football games are usually associated with cheerleaders and marching bands; however, there are more groups that impact our experience that many may not notice.
Led by senior captains Odessa Johnson and Kalile Shelton, the Pride Elite Dance team performs at pep rallies and football games each fall.
“Originally it was started by students Amani and Yarita as a step team, but Yarita left and joined the band in my tenth grade year, and that’s when I became captain,” Johnson said.
After taking over, Johnson and Shelton altered the team to become Pride Elite Dance, as opposed to a step team, enabling them to explore different choreography.
“We pull most of our inspiration from HBCUs [Historically Black Colleges and Universities] dance teams,” Johnson said. “Kalile and I come up with the dances and we’ll either teach them to the girls, or come up with something together.”
To prepare for upcoming competitions, the dance team practices every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday after school.
“It’s really a dance team, but it’s also kind of a sisterhood,” Johnson said. “We all get along well and have lots of fun together.”
Pride Elite Dance not only brings something relatively new to Louisa but also provides a safe and engaging environment for middle and high school girls.
“The dance team influences a lot of girls to put themselves out there, shy away from their fears, and achieve the motivation and the confidence they need,” Johnson said.
Performing alongside Pride Elite Dance is the color guard team, captained by senior Chloe Bombgardner.
“As the captain, I have a larger role in holding accountability and responsibility for the rest of the team,” Bombgardner said. “With that comes the act of cleaning the timing and overall look of the routines in order to make them look perfect.”
Color guard is most often found alongside Louisa’s marching band, performing with flags and other various props.
“I would explain color guard as a community where you can get together and do a performance with your body with flags by showing emotions that are in the music,” senior Lillian Hawley said.
Members have the opportunity to perform with the green band or gold band each year, depending on what best fits their schedule.
“The gold band does the halftime show at the football games and performs in the competitions, and the green band participates in the stands at football games and in parades,” Hawley said.
Instead of creating rivalries, color guard finds family through each other and their opponents in the friendly atmosphere at competitions and games.
“When at a competition, we perform, change, and then sit in the stands to watch the rest of the teams perform,” freshman Valentina Laverdure said. “We all hype each other up, so it’s like a family, or a community.”
To prepare for their performances at competitions and football games, the color guard steadily increases the difficulty in their choreography.
“First years start out by learning how to perform with flags, second years learn rifles, and then if you want to in your third year, you can learn how to twirl a saber,” Laverdure said.
Along with learning new tricks and choreography, color guard allows members to learn how to work and perform with others.
“Color guard positively impacts LCHS by creating a safe space for creative performers to work together and make something beautiful,” Bombgardner said.
As the nights grow cooler and the sun sets earlier, the two groups work together to create the immersive experience that football fans come back to each Friday night.
