On Feb. 4, captains Julia Lvovsky, Samantha Lau and Carli Katz led the Poms team to second place at the Division II counties competition.

While they did not capture first place, this was not an easy triumph, considering that they competed against seven other local high schools, many of which had stellar performances. This second place score was the most recent of their other placings throughout the season, being second, first, then second.

Before their performance, the team completed several long-standing traditions. The morning was spent sharing a team breakfast, assisting with each other’s hair and makeup, and singing along to songs that would lift the team’s spirit. After taking the bus to Montgomery Blair together as a team, they completed a routine stretch and a good luck shake circle before performing. “Before we perform we do this thing where we shake all of our limbs, we listen to hype music while doing our makeup, get our energy up on the bus rides,” senior Lyndsie Lewis said.

With movie songs such as “Rewrite the Stars,” “Gimmie Gimmie,” “Should be Dancing” and “Skyfall,” the team had plenty of opportunities to showcase all of the genres of dance that they knew. Specifically, they included hip-hop, lyrical, pom, jazz and kicks. “My favorite part of the routine [is the] Should be Dancing section, which was jazz funk, because it was a lot of fun,” freshman Jillian Nalibotsky said.

The team competed against Walter Johnson, Bethesda Chevy-Chase, Northwest, Wheaton, Gaithersburg, Richard Montgomery and Wheaton. In all, their dance lasted approximately five and a half minutes, “It was very demanding; we added weekend practices and had to physically work towards improving our stamina so that we could do the entire routine while keeping our energy,” Lewis said.

Their hard work paid off when the entire stadium went quiet to hear the team’s announcement. The team felt a moment of shock, followed by cheers and hugs celebrating their accomplishment. “It felt almost surreal to me as the coach, because I knew Wootton had been consistently placing and so it was my goal this year,” coach Mia Krawczel said.

As a first-year coach, Krawczel said her experience during the season was amazing. “I am most grateful for the team that I have because they taught me the traditions from years past and their dynamic but they were also patient with me on how the year would look and allowed me to make changes as necessary,” Krawczel said.

The entire team shared the joy that came with their win, as they dedicated effort this season. “This was more than I could have ever imagined and I was really proud of myself and the whole team,” Nalibotsky said.

To end the day, the girls all went home and rested, and then went out again for a team dinner. “To celebrate the win we went out to dinner that night at Gregorio’s and then we had a watch party for past county routines,” Lewis said.