Girls on JV and Varsity Poms teams took the stage at their first high school competition of the 2015-2016 season on Nov. 15, in the North Shore Chicago Universal Dance Association (UDA) Competition.

“Our focus was to be the best version of ourselves and to place higher than we did the last time we competed at this competition,” varsity Coach Marija Krosnjar said.

Both JV and varsity teams, consisting of 13 girls each, traveled to Glenbrook South High School for the competition. Competing against seven other teams, varsity placed sixth in the Varsity Pom Category and JV placed last out of four teams in the JV Jazz category.

“Both teams performed with such passion and power,” Krosnjar said. “We were really proud of them. The execution for both squads was right where it needed to be.”

Although the competition was the first of the season, both poms teams have been practicing and performing all year long at various events.

“There were amazing teams in our division and it was great to get inspired by watching them,” JV member Emma Teckiel ‘18 said.

The North Shore Chicago UDA Competition was a regional event that does not lead to another competition, Krosnjar said. Both teams, however, will compete again in January with the same competition group.

“The feedback we get from the competition is really helpful in preparing for our future competitions,” varsity member Nicole Cattin ’16 said. “This competition put us in a great position to start the season.”