Hollywood High School’s Drill Team took first place in NRG’s (Energy) SoCal Competition at Claremont High School on April 13th. The five star event included trophies, certificates, and special awards for the runner ups and winning team.
The Hollywood High Lady Sheiks were six girls who performed a military drill and competed against many schools’ dance, cheer, flag, and drill teams. They were Kenia Agaton, Michelle Valencia, Jessica Matute, and the officers Cynthia Guzman, Kelly Flores, and Andrea Debroy. They were coached by former Hollywood alumni’s Adel Paez and Arody Trujillo.
“It’s my second year competing and I was really nervous, but not as much as I was my first year. I was scared to be judged and winning was unexpected, but it was amazing for our team to win.” said Cynthia Guzman, an SAS junior.
In May, Drill Team will have their second opportunity to perform at the Palm Springs Convention Center for a dance workshop alongside Kaelynn Gobert-Harris, a hip hop dancer who performed on the television show America’s Best Dance Crew and won second place with her group, 8FLAVAHZ. The event will take place on May 11th through 12th and will feature professional-scale dancers, cheer leaders, drill teams, and the like. It is open to anyone who wishes to perform.
“I’m super stoked for Palm Springs, and performance wise I think we’ll get out there with a bang. We were able to perform last year and the crowd and staff loved it,” said officer Kelly Flores, a senior. “We’re definitely nervous but we had the opportunity to perform there once so we know how it may be. All the professional dancers take classes at Palm Springs and they are amazing! All I can say is that we get to represent Hollywood from our precise movements to our technical routine and from our salute.”