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Dance team: LQPV/D-B Shadows' influence looms large across the state

tom elliott, west central tribune, willmar, minn.
·5 min read

Feb. 14—MINNEAPOLIS — The Lac qui Parle Valley/Dawson-Boyd dance team is back at this week's state championships after grabbing Section 3A titles in jazz and high kick last Saturday in Montevideo.

But the Shadows' influence looms large over Minnesota.

When LQPV/D-B hits the floor at about 11:20 a.m. Friday at the Target Center, the group of dancers and coaches won't be the only Shadows in the building.

New London-Spicer Blackcats assistant coaches Madeline and Lydia Aafedt, who are sisters, will help head coach Jennifer Ziemer with their state jazz performance Friday.

And, assistant coaches Hannah Johnson and Grace Johnson, who are not related, will help head coach Erin Christensen lead the Hawley Nuggets at state. Hannah Johnson is former LQPV/D-B Shadows assistant coach. Grace Johnson is a former LQVPV/D-B dancer.

"I'm a former Shadow, too," said LQPV/D-B head coach Carly Wager. "And so is Hope Traeger, our JV coach."

The Shadow connection, Wager agreed, is one of the reasons for LQPV/D-B's continued success at the state level. The Shadows finished second in jazz and third in high kick last year in Wager's first season as head coach. That came after a three-year stretch of consecutive state championships in high kick and jazz.

LQPV/D-B plans to aim for state titles again with a more experienced team. The Shadows lost two seniors from last year and Wager said her experience last year as a first-time coach should help this season.

The Shadows will have 12 dancers on the floor for jazz, with nine having competed last year, including five seniors and three juniors. Atiana Specht, Isabella Hjelle, Peyton Moe, Annika Fernholz, Emily Torstenson, Addy Tufto , Hannah Oie and Isabella Jacobs are returnees. Molly Halvorson, Reese McCoy and Makia Post are the newcomers. Harper Gronholz, who has a fractured foot, will be an alternate.

The Shadows dance to the song "One Way or Another" by Blondie. It's a Cruella DeVille-inspired theme with black and red costums that was the idea of Torstenson, who is one of LQPV/D-B's captains with Fernolz, Hjelle, Moe and Reis Mitchell.

"We would love to make it to the finals," Wager said. "Honestly, if we just go out there and have fun and do our best, that's all that we're asking from them. We will be happy with that. They've worked so hard since last year, hitting the weight room and doing the off-season work."

Top competition to make Friday's finals, which go to the top six teams at 5:30 p.m. after the 12-team preliminaries, will be defending state champion St. Cloud Cathedral, as well as Yellow Medicine East and Holdingford, Wager said.

"Us and Cathedral and YME and Holdingford have all been scoring within three or four points of each other all year," Wager said. "So, it's going to be the team that has its best performances (at state) that will win it."

The Shadows will be 25 members strong for Saturday's high kick competition, with the same four teams likely competing for top honors, Wager said.

YME co-head coach Chelsi Torke agreed.

She's in her first year as a head coach of the Silhouettes, working with co-head coach Ashley Balfany.

"We're just so grateful to go again," said Torke, whose squad finished second in high kick and dance in Section 3A. The Montevideo Gold Dusters finished third in both disciplines to advance from Section 3A.

The Silhouettes will have 10 dancers on the floor for jazz and 24 for high kick. The group includes eight seniors. Captains are Kayla Nordaune, Lauren Sagen, Riley Streich and Kindal Meyer. In jazz, they'll perform to "Coming Home" by Ozzy Osbourne. Balfany came up with the number after hearing the song late one night.

Torke, a former YME dancer, said that continuity is one reason for the Silhouettes' continued success.

"I think we've made state every year since the high school league started sponsoring it," said Torke, a 2014 YME graduate. The Minnesota State High School League sanctioned dance team on March 20, 1996, with the first MSHSL-sponsored state tournament in 1997.

For high kick, YME has a disco theme and will dance to the song "Ladies Night."

"I think the amount of of energy for us is just crazy this year," Torke said.

Wager and Torke agreed that Section 3A is incredibly difficult. The section has produced numerous state champions over the year. And, what makes it unique is that the cheering sections for the three 3A teams — LQPV/D-B, YME and Montevideo — all root for each other at state.

"Honestly, my proudest moment last year was how we cheered for everyone else in our section," Wager said.

Class A teams compete starting at 11:30 a.m. Friday for Jazz and 11:30 a.m. Saturday for High Kick at the Target Center in Minneapolis. The top six from the first round of competition compete in the finals starting at 5:30 p.m. each day.

Here's a list of competitors from each section in order of their section finish, with area teams in bold:

Section 1A — (1) Zumbrota-Mazeppa (2) Cannon Falls (3) Lake City

Section 2A — (1) St. Cloud Cathedral (2) Holdingford (3) New London-Spicer

Section 3A — (1) Lac qui Parle Valley/Dawson-Boyd (2) Yellow Medicine East (3) Montevideo

Section 4A — (1) Crosby-Ironton (2) Minnewaska (3) Hawley

Section 1A — (1) Lake City (2) Wabasha-Kellogg (3) Zumbrota-Mazeppa

Section 2A — (1) St. Cloud Cathedral (2) Holdingford (3) New London-Spicer

Section 3A — (1) LQPV/D-B (2) YME (3) Montevideo

Section 4A — (1) Crosby-Ironton (2) Hawley (3) Bagley

Here's a list of west central area teams that have won state dance titles with the years of their championships:

* BOLD — 2005 A jazz/funk

* LQPV/D-B — 2019 A jazz, A high kick; '20 A jazz, A high kick; '21 A jazz; A high kick

* Montevideo — 1992 A; '93 A; '94 A; '95 A high kick/precision; '98 A high kick/precision; 2002 A high kick/precision

* Yellow Medicine East — 2000 A jazz/funk, '01 A jazz/funk; '02 A jazz/funk; '03A jazz/funk; '08 A high kick; '13 A jazz; '14 A jazz