For the third consecutive year, Walden Grove High School’s Performing Arts Crew Dance Team — PAC — took home first place in the Arizona State Cheerleading/Pom Tournament.
Considering the school has only been open six years, head coach and dance instructor Kristi Lopez is incredibly proud of her students on a number of levels. Sure, they have talent, but that isn’t why they are champions, Lopez said.
“They just have the mentality that they are going to outwork everybody. They just don’t ever give in,” Lopez said. “They’re so disciplined. The mental toughness to get through the state season is unbelievable. These kids will know how to face any challenge in life.”
Being state champs three years in a row is amazing, Lopez said, but even more remarkable is that only one of the 17 dance team members was on last year’s team. In addition, Sahuarita Unified School District doesn’t have feeder dance programs. All of her students are learning dance from the ground up.
Since July, Lopez and the team have choreographed at least 10 routines. The team meets for one hour during the school day, three hours after school twice a week, and all day Saturdays. They also give up rodeo break, spring break and other holidays to practice, Lopez said.
The team typically performs at events four or five times a month. In 2014, the team performed at a National School Board Association meeting in New Orleans, and last month, they performed at a Phoenix Suns basketball game. The Suns invited the team to play after seeing a Facebook video based on “Toy Story” that has reached 10 million views, Lopez said.
Lopez said she had 70 students audition last year. Those who make the team aren’t just dancers, they are also “passionate, good people” who are respectful, prompt and dependable, she said. She interviews each prospective member’s teachers to make sure each has those qualities.
While choreographing the routine they performed Saturday, Lopez urged students to display their individual style.
Seventeen-year-old Carlos Quihuiz, the lone student who has been on all three championship teams, said he never dreamed he’d be part of one, let alone three. Talent, hard work and uniqueness led to their latest success, he said.
“We decided to add in different moves, moves that aren’t common in hip hop dances, so we could stand out,” Quihuiz said.
Quihuiz decided to try out for the team because his sister, Kathya, was on the original team and he saw the special bond she shared with the other members.
“We are a very different team because of how we push ourselves to new limits,” Quihuiz said. “One thing we have that other teams don’t have is that we really care about each other and look out for each other as much as possible.”
Everyone on the team loves Lopez because while she demands a lot in all areas of their lives, she also knows when it’s time just to have fun, Quihuiz said.
The lone freshman on the team, Quincy Harmon, 14, said winning state was an “amazing” experience and one he hopes to repeat next year.
“If our team does everything we’re supposed to and we push ourselves and support each other when we’re down, I think we can do it again,” he said.
While hard work, there’s just nothing like dancing, Harmon said.
“When I dance, I’m a different person sometimes; it brings out more me,” he said.
Sophomore Cori Anderson, 16, said the PACC Dance Team is like her second family.
“They’re amazingly talented and I’m so proud they were able to accomplish what we accomplished Saturday,” Anderson said. “We don’t just bring talent. We bring love, energy, inspiration and a good vibe to the dance room. You feel welcomed and loved.”
Despite having won the prior state championships, Lopez said it wasn’t until now that she realized she can trust her process and her teaching techniques.
“For the first time ever, I took a deep breath and said, ‘Wow, I am good at what I do,’ because I question myself a lot, a lot, a lot,” Lopez said. “I finally feel confident in what I’m doing.”