The Hoover High Dance Team blew the USA regionals competition away on Saturday at Agoura High School.

The competition was the deciding factor for determining if the teams would qualify for USA Nationals.

“Going into last weekend’s regional, I felt good about the changes we’ve been making to both routines and was not only excited to see them on the floor but to read what the judges had to say about them too,” said Bridget Bacon, the dance coach at Hoover High School.

Junior Varsity took the floor at 5:52 p.m. The theme for its Pom dance was love.

The routine was a dance to a mashup of multiple love songs including “Love Shack” and “You Give Love a Bad Name.”

The JV team worked hard to learn the dance, and for its coach, their improvement was noticeable.

“I think most members would be shocked watching back what they looked like at the tryouts last April versus what they look like now, and that doesn’t just go for first-year members. Dance technique gets better, Pom motions get stronger, and the charisma each member carries with them on and off the floor shows,” said Bacon.

Next, Hoover’s main competitor, the Crescenta Valley High School Varsity team, performed.

“CV’s performance was great! As someone who knows how hard it can be to execute a routine to its full potential. I think they did amazing with the choreography and the technicality of the routine,” said Ariana Jovel, captain of Hoover’s Varsity team.

Following Crescenta Valley’s performance, the Tornado Varsity team stormed onto the stage at 6:22 p.m.

“I felt very nervous before I went on. Not that I was nervous about the possibility of losing to CV but how well we were going to execute the routine,” said Jovel. “The past few weeks practicing have been rough with trying to perfect the routine for our CheerPros State Competition and for Nationals.”

Varsity’s routine was themed around the sky and the stars, and its dance was out of this world.

“After we performed, I felt relieved it was over and that we gave it our all. After weeks of hard work I felt so happy and accomplished that it was all worth it in the end. I definitely think that this competition gives the team a big push going into State Champs,” Jovel said.
After Varsity’s interstellar performance, it was time for the scores to be announced.

First, JV scores were revealed.

Though Hoover’s JV team was the only team competing in its division, the team still won with an astonishing 78 points.

“JV’s main focus is their body control/pom placement,” said Bacon, when asked about what they could improve on.

After JV’s win, it was time to reveal Varsity winners. The head to head battle for first place between Hoover and Crescenta Valley Varsity teams ended with the Tornadoes on top with a score of 85.

The performances and scores left Bacon delighted.

“I’m always proud of our team,” said Bacon.

Even though both of Hoover’s teams won, both teams will have to work hard for nationals; and run a few laps as consequence for the simple mistakes that cost them points on their final scores.

“There’s nothing more challenging as a coach than having to watch your team miss out on easy points,” said Bacon. “We’ll be spending the time from now until Nationals as we have been. Practicing until it’s permanent and making the changes necessary to make sure we take the best product to the Nationals stage.”

Following the Agoura Hills competition, the team will head to USA nationals on February 17th and 18th at the Anaheim Convention center.

“We’re a month away from Nationals where both teams medaled last year and Varsity brought home another National Title,” said Bacon.

“Are we ready as of today? No. But that doesn’t mean we won’t be ready in a month. ”