MINOOKA IHSA DANCE COMPETITION PAGE

UPDATES

WEDNESDAY 12/4/19:

South and southwest suburban teams (plus a few outliers) get to dance on a split day at Minooka this Saturday. 1A and 2A teams go in the morning while a list of 3A giants dance in the afternoon session. Centralia will be the big story in 1A. Last year’s breakout team at IHSA State and an IDTA hip hop category powerhouse for the past few seasons, these dancers face plenty of expectations and get their chance to set the tone at Minooka. Also doing the road trip thing is Mahomet-Seymour as they continue their string of Chicago-area IHSA comps, impressing judges at every stop. Kewanee also ventures far from home to compete against this stacked 1A group, while Fieldcrest has a slightly shorter trip (they were at Andrew, if you recall). We get our second look at buzzworthy Evergreen Park. We get to see how well-coached Somonauk has adjusted since their first comp a few weeks back. Super intriguing: a clash of top-shelf skills and choreography between Joliet Catholic and Providence Catholic.

The 2A field has teams logging lots of miles, too. Underrated Pekin visits the Chi area along with solidly successful Ottawa. Two more teams to watch out for are Bremen and DeKalb, coming from oppo directions on the map but both bearing lots of potential every season. Crystal Lake South and Yorkville make their season debuts while pom-tastic Oak Forest looks to build on last week’s launch. Jones College Prep opened a lot of eyes up north at Libertyville, and now have a shot at making a bigger name for themselves in the SW burbs. They’re in the best position to make a run at faves Lincoln-Way West, who everyone and their mother is dying to see.

Oh, 3A, where do we start? It’s been described as a mini-state, this 3A group. Superstars Andrew hit the floor before possibly laying low, so here’s your chance to see these amazing dancers. Huntley shined at the aforementioned Andrew’s competition and they’ll have to do more of that to battle this loaded field of afternoon teams. South Elgin quietly looked beautiful at Mundelein; fans won’t want to miss their 2 routines. Coming off a win last Sunday, Lincoln-Way Central has to be hyped to see how they match up against the best in 3A. Lockport’s got the upgraded skills and stellar choreo, and here’s their chance to improve on their start at Andrew. Hmm, this preview could go on and on…a big unveiling by Waubonsie Valley, guaranteed excellence by Bartlett, Stevenson, and York, plus a better-than-ever Minooka team. So much “wow” packed into 4+ hours! Gimme the hot sauce.

THE LOWDOWN

HIGHLIGHTS

No pics for this comp but we’ve got some notes…

3A

This field was the closest simulation we have of what the state Day 2 field might look like! Flip side: really good teams might not only go home outside the top 3, but pretty deep into the placement list. The two teams that made the biggest statements were Minooka and Huntley finishing 1-2. Both share a similar profile in years past: they easily get to state, usually make it to Saturday, but are just a tick below the very very top, creamy, delicious layer of 3A teams that take home an oversized trophy. Saturday’s rankings show that we’ll have to revise that profile for Bloomington ’20.

Add this to your 3A brownie mix: this competition shows that Bartlett and South Elgin are quietly two very dangerous teams, quite capable of being around that 90 threshold and hanging around the top tier. And Andrew and Stevenson aren’t leaving the picture, either (both being examples of teams that had really good 90+ days and picking up 3rd and 4th). With an 88.72 for 7th place, the lurker in the background has to be York. Well into year two under their new coach (and former assistant), the team has primo choreography and would love to earn their 2nd state title in three years.

2A

It wouldn’t be competition season without a few fun upsets. We’ve seen a couple in 3A so far this winter, and the 2A field saw the pleasant surprise of upstart Crystal Lake South taking home 1st. The bigger story might be the cluster of routines north of 80 points. Everyone expects Lincoln-Way West to dance a state-bound season, but it’s DeKalb, Ottawa, and Pekin that are also more than capable of making their sectionals super interesting.

1A

There are normal slam dunks, and then there’s those that shatter the backboard. That’s what Joliet Catholic did in the morning session on Saturday, coming darn close to the rare 10 point interval over 2nd place. Providence Catholic’s two routines are one of the coolest stories so far in this division, and the team continued to make it known that they’re firmly among the Chicago area’s 1A leaders. Gotta shout it out to Rich East for their 3rd place finish among a pretty stout 1A field. And the impressive breakout season for Evergreen Park kept rolling with their 5th place ranking.

3A SCORES

2A SCORES

1A SCORES

JV 3A SCORES

JV 2A SCORES

JV 1A SCORES

ILLINOIS DANCERS

DANCERS EVERYWHERE

(coming soon)

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