Sweet Home’s dance-drill team finished fourth out of four in a field dominated by large teams at the Thurston Invitational Saturday, Jan. 14.
The good news for the Huskiettes, though, is that they scored 63.6 points, guaranteeing them a second-round berth in the state championships in March, where they will be matched against teams their size, coach Kristen Ashcraft said.
Sweet Home’s eight dancers were matched against Stayton, which had 32 girls on its team, Marist and Santiam, which all were at least twice the Huskies’ numbers.
“Visually, it doesn’t look the same,” said Ashcraft of how the judges responded to her team. “As we get to bigger competitions, we’ll be matched against teams more our size.”
Sweet Home will travel to Stayton on Feb. 4, where, Ashcraft said, she expects at least six teams in the 3A division.
The other good news for the Huskies, she said, is that seniors Hayley Cole and Chelsea Gagner made call-backs at the tryouts for the all-state team in Woodburn on Sunday and Monday of this week. Ashcraft said only 11 girls out of 56 dancers made call-backs.
“They looked wonderful,” she said of the co-captains, the only seniors on her team.
The all-state team will be announced at the state championships, she said.