SJO Dance Team finishes the season 16th in the state

SJO Dance Team
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
The SJO Dance Team pose for a photo while waiting for Friday's performance results at Grossinger Motors Arena during the IHSA Competitive Dance State Finals.
BLOOMINGTON - Going to state is a big deal. Competing against the top 30 teams in the state, the St. Joseph-Ogden dance team finished 16th out of 81 high school dance programs at this year's IHSA Competitive Dance State Finals.

"It was just like the best experience in the world," said senior Olivia Getty before the 12 finalists were announced at Friday's preliminary round at Grossinger Motors Arena. "Regardless of how we finish, I feel really proud of how we danced today. I feel like we did well."

The best part about competing at state for Reese Wheatley, one of two seniors on the squad, was spending the day with her team, giving advice throughout the day, and being there for them.

"It just means so much to be here," she said. "It just shows how hard our whole team worked throughout the entire season."

Getty, the other senior, said making it to state was the result of the Spartans' dedication and work ethic during the season. "It shows all of the hard work it took to get here."

Wheatley said Alyssa Hudson, the team's new head coach, is one of the best coaches she has worked with.

"She loves us so much and has spent so much time with us. She shows that at every single practice."

Getty added, "She pushed us so hard. She saw our potential from day one and did not let us give up on ourselves. She pushed us the whole season."

SJO missed the cut for the finals by four places. Finishing ahead of the SJO Dance Team with a score of 80.88 were Glenbard South (13th, 82.90), Civic Memorial (14th, 82.64), and Elmwood (15th, 81.24).

The 2025 State Championship went to Providence Catholic, who bested the competition with a score of 93.56. Earning a score of 92.34 and finishing in the top three for the third consecutive year since the pandemic, Morris took home another second-place trophy. The reigning J'ettes from Jacksonville, who had hoped to achieve a three-peat, finished third with a score of 91.12 in this season's title run.

Getty's advice to next year's dance team is to work hard.

"Work so hard," she advised. "Every moment pays off. Just put in the time and the effort. It will pay off."

St. Joseph-Ogden Dance Team at IHSA State
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
The SJO Dance Team performs their modern dance routine in the preliminary round at Grossinger Motors Arena during the IHSA Competitive Dance State Finals.

Wheatley's message to her fellow teammates was, "Remember that you are not alone. Everyone is going through something, so show up every day and do your very best. Keep yourselves and each other proud."

The Spartan Dance Team roster also included Adelyn Childers, Abigail Getty, Gracyn Sjoken, Abigail Bello, Alivia Learned, Hadley McDonald, Lilly Sollars, Ava Gallo, and Lilyah Jones. Hudson was assisted by former dance team member Kaitlyn Hess.

St. Joe-Ogden Athletics
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Dance has a date at state

This week, the SJO Dance Team will undoubtedly be working harder than they have all season - happily, without a doubt - in preparation for their 10:33 performance at the IHSA Competitive Dance State Finals on Friday. The squad will compete against 29 other teams that advanced to the state semifinals from their respective sectionals on Saturday.

However, the squad was just a snowball's throw away from not having the opportunity to even compete against the other top small school dance teams from around the state.

SJO Dance Team performs during a home game
Members of the SJO Dance Team perform during a home game earlier this month. The Spartans head to state after finishing 5th at last weekend's IHSA sectional in Mascoutah. See more SJO dancers in action. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

With a major winter event predicted to roll through central Illinois that would make highway travel precarious and possibly dangerous, the Dance Team was notified on Friday that they would not be traveling to the Illinois High School Association's Mascoutah sectional on the following day. SJO, like many other area schools using the same weather forecast as a guide, canceled all of their planned activities anticipating nasty conditions.

"The predicted weather forecast was not looking favorable for our area, on top of the fact that we had a 3 hour drive to our sectional," head coach Emily Williams explained. A SJO dance alumna herself, she has been the team's head coach for the past nine years. "Our administration made a decision that it would not be a safe trip for our dancers and their families. They also called off all other SJO activities for the weekend."

Williams said she and school administrators met with the disappointed athletes and parents on Friday afternoon explaining the decision. She pointed out that administrators from five other area schools also canceled their travel plans to the sectional competition.

However, on Saturday morning the expected 6-to-8 inch of snowfall failed to materialize. Williams and several parents contacted St. Joseph-Ogden superintendent Brian Brooks to see if they could make the trip.

"(Mr. Brooks) checked every radar possible and went out and drove several roads around Saint Joe," Williams said. "The decision was made by our administration that we could go as long as we could get a hold of IHSA and make sure it was okay with them."

Athletic director Justin Franzen was then able to square things away with the IHSA to make sure the squad could still compete. Soon after the dance team and loyal fans were on the road headed toward southern Illinois.

The team competed against 12 schools for one of the top six spots to punch their ticket to state finals at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington. The Spartans' performance was fifth best of the day.

With a final score of 85.13, SJO finished by behind the sectional champions Villa Grove (88.67), Civic Memorial (87.60), Unity (86.57) and St. Anthony (85.67). Clinton filled the last state-finalist slot with a score of 85.10.

This will be the third to trip to state for the program since the IHSA began hosting them in 2013. The Spartans made it to state in both 2014 and 2016.

Williams hopes to see plenty of St. Joseph-Ogden family and friends filling seats in the arena and cheering for her girls. A fan bus is being organized by the school. She expects details to be available on the school website by Wednesday.
SJO dance team member performs during the Spartans' home game.
A SJO dance team member performs during the Spartans' home game against Villa Grove-Heritage earlier this month. The group hopes to see lots of fans at Grossinger Motors Arena cheering them on. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

"Our dancers would love to see as many people in maroon, white, and Columbia Blue on Friday as possible," Williams said. "We have a great group of girls who are much more like a family than a team. They have worked very hard and are elated to have earned the chance to compete in the IHSA State prelims on Friday."

For now until Friday, the SJO Dance Team will be working to perfect their routine and fixed deficiencies noted by last weekend's panel of judges.

We will be practicing everyday and will break down our hip hop routine, piece by piece," Williams said. "We will go over our scoresheets from Saturday’s sectional and see what the judges said we can improve on."

Members expected to compete at Friday's state semifinal include Erin Beyers, Kalli Ingram, Haley Griebat, Rachel Gherna, Kaitlyn Hess, Ava Mills, Sara Milioli, Samantha Naylor, Isabelle Brooks, Kylie Duckett, Tessa Smith, Bella Getty, Ella Besson and Alessa Anzelmo.


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SJO Dance Team finishes 11th in first state finals appearance

SJO's Dance Team closed out a breakthrough season with an 11th-place finish at the IHSA Class 1A State Finals, just two points shy of cracking the top ten.

Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

Members of the SJO Dance Team perform their routine at Grossinger Motors Arena during the IHSA Competitive State Dance Finals on Saturday. See more photos below.


BLOOMINGTON - The St. Joseph-Ogden Dance Team closed out its season Saturday with an 11th-place finish at the IHSA Class 1A Competitive Dance State Finals, capping a year of growth and perseverance that sent the Spartans into competition against the state's elite programs. SJO earned a score of 83.35 in the final round, finishing ahead of Murphysboro (83.02) and just shy of cracking the top ten behind Evergreen Park (85.14), while Joliet Catholic Academy claimed the championship trophy with a score of 92.28.

The Spartans qualified for the finals by posting the 10th-highest score in Friday's preliminary round at 83.92, securing their spot among the final 12 teams and performing third in Saturday's performance order. For a program competing at state for the first time and fielding a roster with five underclassmen among 10 team members, the experience of standing alongside perennial contenders like Jacksonville, the runner-up at 91.62, and Morris, third at 91.06, offered a glimpse of what sustained success requires at this level.

Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
Coached by Alyssa Hudson, the team's routine was built around a metaphor of moving through adversity rather than avoiding it, choreographed to the song "Lightning Crashes" by Live and performed in costumes designed to evoke the chaos and color of a lightning storm. Hudson said the theme reflected the team's own journey this season, as they navigated the mental and physical challenges of competing at the highest level while building a program still in its infancy on the state stage.

"We learned a lot about moving through adversity as a team this year and we really leaned into that as our inspiration," Hudson said. "It feels so amazing to be in the state finals for the first time with the SJO dance program. We are happy to be here and we'll continue to grow the program every year."

Sophomore Ava Gallo, one of the underclassmen returning next season, said the team left everything on the floor despite falling short of a trophy. She pointed to mindset as a key area for improvement heading into next year's campaign, particularly when it comes to overcoming the mental barriers that can surface in high-stakes competition.

"We put in all the effort throughout the entire season, we went through ups and downs, and I feel like we literally put everything into this dance," Gallo said. "A positive mindset can really go a long way to push through all the mental blocks you have."

In addition to Gallo, this season's state qualifying team included seniors Abby Getty and Gracyn Sjoken; juniors Hadley McDonald, Lilly Sollars, Alivia Learned; and freshmen Darby Manion, Jillian Davis, Avary Buhr, and Leah Stephenson.

Hudson thanked the Spartans' fans, who brought light-up signs and energetic support throughout the season, and credited the administration at St. Joseph-Ogden for backing the program's growth. With the taste of state competition now behind them and a core of returning dancers ready to build on this year's foundation, the message from both coach and team was clear: this is just the beginning.

"We are upward and onward from here," Hudson said. "We are really excited."


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TAGS: St. Joseph-Ogden dance team state finals results, SJO Spartans IHSA dance competition 2025, Class 1A competitive dance state championship Illinois, St. Joseph-Ogden first state dance appearance


~ Photo Gallery ~
SJO Dance Team at State

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SJO dance team qualifies for state finals, Unity dancers will also be there

SJO Dance Team performs at home basketball game
Members of the SJO Dance Team perform during halftime of the Spartans' home game against Prairie Central. The squad finished sixth at last Saturday's sectional meet in Effingham advancing to the IHSA Competitive State Dance Finals on Friday in Bloomington.
Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Effingham - The St. Joseph-Ogden Dance Team qualified for the IHSA Competitive Dance State Finals for the fifth time in program history at the St. Anthony Sectional on Saturday.

"We are very excited that the team has qualified, they have been working towards this goal all season and it feels good to have accomplished the first step of it!" said head coach Emily Williams, who has engineered the Spartan dance program to state all five times.

SJO will perform at approximately 1:13 pm in Friday's preliminary round at Grossinger Motors Arena. Unity's dance team, who also qualified for state placing third at the sectional meet, will take the stage 16 minutes later at 1:29.

Only the top 90 dance programs from the more than 800 Illinois High School Association member schools will display the fruit of their hard work, talent, and choreography on Friday. Making the cut for state, SJO and Unity are already among the top 30 small-school dance squads in Illinois.

Williams and the dance team hope to have a large contingent of fans, classmates, and supporters on hand to watch them perform.

"We are so excited to have fellow students, family, and friends in Bloomington on Friday to cheer us on," Williams said. "There is no better feeling than seeing a section full of SJO fans and hearing the cheers as we take the floor."

Fan energy can play a huge part in a team advancing to the final round. Out of the 30 qualifiers from the three classes, only 12 teams advance to the championship round on Saturday.

"IHSA state is a big deal and an exciting time for our school and community," she added. "We will appreciate all of the support."

In the meantime, the SJO Dance Team will spend the next four days polishing their routine to impress the judges. While the Spartan program has qualified for state four times since 2014, qualifying for the trophy round has been elusive.

"State is tough. We will go over our routine this week, count by count, and clean it up," Williams explained. "We will make any necessary changes early in the week, so we can drill it over and over before Friday."

The Unity dance team has advanced past the prelims four times since the 2014-15 season. The most recent appearance was just before the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019, when the squad finished in 6th place, the program's highest finish to date. Counting this weekend's success, Unity has qualified for state seven times. This is trip number one for first-year head coach Maddy Wilson.

Tickets are $11 per person and are now on sale online at Ticket Master. Tickets are also available by calling the City Box Office at (309) 434-2777. Doors open at 9:15a on Friday.


Sectional standings

1 Jacksonville 89.20
2 Clinton 82.13
3 Unity 78.08
4 Quincy Notre Dame 77.23
5 Lincoln 74.30
6 St. Joseph-Ogden 73.60

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Going to state! SJO Dance Team advances to Competitive Dance State Finals

A member of the Spartan Dance Team performs at halftime during St. Joseph-Ogden's home basketball game against Warrensburg-Latham at the Christie Clinic Shootout. The Spartan finished fourth at the St. Anthony Competitive Dance sectional on Saturday. Advancing to the state final prelims on Friday, SJO will perform at 10:39 AM for a spot in Saturday's championship round.

Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
EFFINGHAM — The Spartan Dance Team secured their third consecutive trip to the Illinois High School Association Competitive State Dance Finals after finishing fourth at the St. Anthony sectional on Saturday.

The eleven-member troupe earned a score of 80.17, placing behind Jacksonville (90.27), the defending Class 1A state champions. Clinton took second place, with St. Anthony finishing third, joining nine other small school programs at Bloomington's Grossinger Motors Arena for the state finals.

Four additional local teams competed at sectionals but did not advance. Villa Grove placed 7th, Unity 9th, and Rantoul 16th at Effingham. Mahomet-Seymour finished 11th in their sectionals, completing the area teams that did not advance.

In Class 2A at Mahomet, Champaign Central finished third behind Bradley-Bourbonnais and Washington. The Maroons are scheduled to perform at 1:49 PM on Friday.

The Spartan Dance Team roster includes Olivia Getty, Reese Wheatley, Adelyn Childers, Abigail Getty, Gracyn Sjoken, Abigail Bello, Alivia Learned, Hadley McDonald, Lilly Sollars, Ava Gallo, and Lilyah Jones. Alyssa Hudson coaches the Spartans, assisted by Kaitlyn Hess.

Tickets for Friday's preliminary competition are $12 at the door and can be purchased in advance online via TicketMaster or by phone at the City Box Office at (309) 434-2777.

Schedule for Friday
SESSION 1 - 1A & 2A Preliminaries

9:15 a.m. Doors open to the State Final venue site
10:00 a.m. Welcome
10:10 a.m. Announcements & National Anthem
10:15 a.m. First Performance (1A & 2A Alternate Performances)
12:15 p.m. Officials Break
2:21 p.m. Last Performance
2:40 p.m. Announcement of 1A Finalists
2:50 p.m. Announcement of 2A Finalists

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