This was the fifth year of the American Dance and Drill Teams West Texas Championship and the first year it was held in Lubbock. The Frenship High School Pom Squads were eager to show their skills off in their hometown. You could say their months and countless hours of hard work paid off, as they were awarded several team and individual awards.
“I am so proud of our JV and Varsity dancers. Competing takes a dancer to a whole different level of training and preparation,” said Varsity Pom Coach, Melissa Oakeley. “These dancers made their pom squads at the end of April of 2023 and literally began practicing the following week for the upcoming season. These dancers began learning their routines in the summer and have practiced every week since then to prepare for competition season.”
Different from a dance recital on a stage, each routine prepared for the competition is set on a gym floor. This requires a different kind of spacing, synchronization, technique, precision, energy, choreography, and timing. All those elements are judged on a very high level for the dance teams.
“It takes a grueling amount of time to get all of those routine elements together and these dancers must not only be in tune with all the "cleans" every week but also have the body and spatial awareness to do it all in perfect spacing on the floor,” said Coach Oakeley.
Another element of performing as an elite dancer is projecting with strong energy and facials. The photos taken at the competition truly capture the energy on the dance floor.
“These dancers gave their heart and soul in each routine, and the energy they brought was felt by every audience member. You can't ask for more as a coach when you see them commit to a routine like they did this weekend,” said Coach Oakeley.
Besides tremendously excelling performance wise, another area that made Coach Oakeley proud was how both Pom Squads represented Frenship through demonstrating the Frenship Way. The Frenship Way is rooted in servant leadership, instilling positive behaviors in students and staff, and community service. The Frenship Way SERVE Model stands for: Smile, Engage, Respect, Volunteer, and Encourage.
“Not only did our teams go into this weekend prepared, but they also represented "The Frenship Way" in all their actions,” said Coach Oakeley. “They are considerate, supportive and kind not only to one another but also the other competitive teams that attend these competitions. It makes me so proud to see these talented humans also demonstrate incredible character in the process.”
At the competition Coach Oakeley even walked away with an award herself and gives all credit to the Frenship Dance Program.
“I was awarded Outstanding Director for the second year in a row and that is such an amazing honor and privilege. This award is voted on by the other coaches and directors that attend the competition and I think it speaks greatly about how they view me and my program that they would vote on me for this title again. It is an honor I do not take lightly, and I am truly honored to be viewed in such a positive light.”
Through major injury setbacks causing the teams to re-adjust routines and adapt, Coach Oakeley is pleased with how the teams took the setback and turned it into a comeback.
“I am so proud of all my kids beyond what words could say,” said Coach Oakeley. “I’m proud of them for being good-hearted and kind teammates who were united despite any setbacks. I’m proud of them for being insanely hard workers who showed up to every practice ready to work. I’m proud of my injured dancers for taking on a different role of support and encouragement. When they couldn’t physically step into a performance, they were ready to lend a hand to support their team.”
Having a supportive community is something that Coach Oakeley wants to echo her thankfulness for.
“I would like to thank the Frenship Community for supporting our Pom Program and recognizing these incredible athletes not only for their talent and abilities, but also their character and what they represent here at Frenship.”
Coming up next for the Pom Squads is the Crowd-Pleasers Competition on February 16-18 in New Braunfels. The dancers are spending the next weeks practicing and refining their technique for the competition.
“To compare our competition season to that of UIL, this is our state-level competition. We have our work cut out for us these next 3 weeks to take all our routines to the next level, but we are confident and focused on what needs to be done before we head to New Braunfels,” said Coach Oakeley.
West Texas Championship Results
Solo Awards, Senior Private Studio Category
- 1st place, Rachael Boyer
School Teams, JV Solo Category
- 1st place, Addison Stewart
- 1st runner up, Kamdyn Swindoll
Varsity Solo Category
- 1st place, Rachael Boyer
- 3rd place, Halley Reynolds
- 4th place, Landry White
Solo Winner Circle, High Scoring Solo
- Public, Rachael Boyer
Special Awards
- Outstanding director, Melissa Oakeley
- 1st place Academic Achievement, JV POM
Outstanding Routines Voted “WOW FACTOR” by judges
- FHS All Squad Pep Rally Routine
- FHS Varsity Pom Routine
- FHS Varsity Hip-Hop Routine
Awarded on Scores of Routines
- D1, Pep Rally All Squad
- Sweepstakes and Gussie Neil, FHS Varsity POM
- Sweepstakes and Gussie Neil, FHS JV POM
Judges Award (282 or Higher Score to be recognized)
- All 7 routines received a judge's award of being scored 282 or higher by all 3 judges
- Jazz, FHS JV
- Pom, FHS Varsity & JV
- Hip-Hop, FHS Varsity & JV
- Contemporary, FHS Varsity
- Pep Rally, FHS
Best overall
(4 categories to possibly win through choreography, technique, precision, and performance)
- Platinum, Varsity POM
- Silver, JV POM
Best In Class
(Overall awards in their team category)
- JV- FHS JV 2nd overall
- Varsity small team-FHS VARSITY POM Best In Class Winner
Best of The Best in The Entire Competition
- 1st place, FHS Varsity POM
Congratulations, Pom Squads!
Photos by: Camden Reese, Frenship High School Junior