As Alexis Jain ‘26 steps on the mat, a rush of adrenaline carries her forward. She steels herself as she shifts into a confident and energetic smile, concealing the nerves and meticulous planning that has gone into the routine. As the music blares over the loudspeakers, Jain strikes the first pose of the dance. 

“It’s a combination of nerves and excitement,” Jain said. “I’m nervous because we’re performing. Those two minutes are all we get. Everything that we work for in practice is leading up to those minutes. It’s exciting because it’s what I really love doing, and I love performing, and you only get so many [competitions], but you feel your heart beating out of your chest, and it doesn’t feel real.”

Jain is currently in her third year with Poms and her first year on Varsity. Last year, she led the JV team as one of the captains. She is currently competing as an alternate for the lyrical routine. Since its inception the Poms team has been established as the cheerleaders for not only the sport’s teams but for the entire LT community. The team cheers for everything from basketball games to LT’s annual All-School Assembly. Besides from performing at competitions, the Poms team may be most known for their football half-time performances. 

“Performing Thunderstruck at the football game was so iconic, and normally you can’t hear much when you’re on the field, but as soon as the beginning notes started playing, everyone went absolutely crazy,” Jain said.

Many coaches have held a passion for this interqual team, and coach Brittney Smith is no different. She started coaching JV Poms around 11 years ago, and then during the 2018-2019 season, she became the varsity head coach, Smith said. These 11 years of Poms teams have been made up of hundreds of talented dancers, but each has had a variety of strengths.

“Every year is different,” Smith said. “Whether it is a different size team, different strengths, or just that there are new members of the team each year.  We do have a lot of new varsity members this year.”

This year’s team placed 1st at their conference, on January 20th at Hinsdale South. On January 31st the LT Poms team competed at IHSA state in Bloomington. At IHSA they made it to day two of the competition and placed 7th overall. Last year, the LT Poms team placed 6th at IHSA State. The preparation for these competitions is important in the overall success of the team, and so is the relationship between the dancers.

“A lot of the girls come from similar studios, so we already know each other, but our season is so long that you get close with everyone and talk with everyone and it’s so nice, welcoming, and inviting,” Jain said.

Their success at these competitions is not the only indicator of their ability as a team. They need to also form strong bonds with their fellow team members to allow the routines to appear polished, Smith said. For her, these bonding moments are the most valuable of them all.

“We have had a couple practices this season where I found myself and the team rolling over in laughter, and those are my favorite moments,” Smith said. “Of course, I love the moments after their performances when they are so proud of what they did, but sometimes those random funny moments during the hardest times are what makes our team so fun.”

Even though their season has come to an end, and some members will go on to graduate from LT, it’s their passion for their sport that will forever bond them.

“We dance because we love it,” Smith said. “Sometimes in the hardest part of the season when we are stuck in the rut of comparison during competition season and constantly focused on corrections and critiques, we have to remember our why.”