Admittedly, it will be strange to not see Maddie Todd as a part of the Jefferson dance team this school year. But with her graduation, it opens the door for more leaders to step up and guide the Blue Jays’ dancers to new heights. The team returns six letter-winners, which will ease the transition for those that are new to the squad.
Emma Capps, Paige Galli, Payton Siebert, Riley Jackson, Abi Smith, and Morgan Todd each return, and head coach Dana Wisdom is excited to see what this group can do. “A great strength this year is the amount of returning girls to the team,” Coach Wisdom noted. “We also have more dancers with dance experience than ever before.”
And that will be hard to miss, as Wisdom mentioned some new faces that should fall right into step. “I am looking forward to what my freshmen girls, Jayde Schnitzler, Anna Rawe, Hailey Pruitt, and Valerie Duepner bring to the table as far as ability and experience,” Coach Wisdom explained. “I look forward to working with all of the girls. My seniors, Paige, Riley, Payton, Jillian Obermeyer, and Emma are a great group of girls that I have had the pleasure of working with over the last few years, and I’m looking forward to watching them gear up the juniors, Abi, Emily Sullivan, Reagan Kennedy and Morgan, to take over next year. I have a few sophomore girls, Paige Wagner and Tatum Govreau, that are new to the squad, and I look forward to what they have to contribute to the team as well. I am really excited about this season and the upcoming competition season.”
But like so many teams, the Covid-19 situation has made scheduling unclear. “As of right now, our competition season is up in the air as far as which ones are being held and when,” Wisdom pointed out. “We are looking forward to attending MSTA MO State this spring in St. Charles.” Nevertheless, there are still some special dates circled on the calendar. “Definitely senior night, as well as our first hip hop routine that will be performed at the first home football game,” she said. “We are looking forward to getting started on our competition routines for this year as well. We will be adding several group and solo numbers to our competition routines.”
Coach Wisdom has some simple expectations set for the year. “I want us to build upon what we started with attending competitions last year,” the head coach admitted. “I want the girls to get out there on the field, perform, and feel proud of what they are doing. We have so many girls this year with extraordinary dance abilities, and I look forward to working with them and building upon those skills, as well as learning new skills for all the girls on the team.”
Transitions are the main element the team will look to improve this school year. Coach Wisdom wants those to look sharp and clean. “That is my main goal for this year,” she concluded.
