Well the day has finally come, the 2016 Dance/Drill Team Competition located in Lafayette, LA. The day I have been waiting for since the beginning of the school year was finally here. On January 17, 2016, I awoke to a buzzing alarm starting at six AM and continuing to buzz loudly until six fifteen AM. The adrenaline pumped me up as I hurriedly gathered my costumes, bobby pins, and makeup. I quickly threw on my brown pants, white Carmelette t-shirt and jacket, and then scurried downstairs to meet the other sixty-one girls in the lobby. As all sixty-two of us began sprinting across the street to the Cajundome, butterflies began to fly around inside of our stomachs. We had no idea what would later be in store for us. We all had this feeling of excitement which we felt was a sign, but we did not want to get our hopes up. We finally arrived at the Cajundome in which we all sat at the front door nervously waiting to run in and get the spots that we claimed to be ours even if Mrs. Doran says we do not have assigned spots. Finally, the judges, dressed in black pencil skirts, white blouses, and heels, let us into the Cajundome where we stumbled over each other trying to beat everyone else in. As sixty-two girls ran into the Cajundome, the atmosphere was suddenly filled with intense anxiety and excitement. Shortly after marking our spot with our brown Carmelette bags, we ran to the dressing room to begin getting ready.
   

We began the day with our Jazz dance. Shortly after, we performed Hip Hop, Novelty, and finally Jai Ho. Jazz, Hip Hop, and Novelty looked amazing, and we all felt as though we did wonderful. We finally felt that all of our blood, sweat, and tears really did pay off at competition. And of course, there was the best of all, Jai Ho. All sixty-two of us were in this dance, so it was quite a disaster trying to get ready. We all scurried around the room as our costumes jingled and made even more noise adding to the disaster that was already present. Finally, we finished getting ready, and we all walked backstage feeling scared yet excited at the same time. Suddenly, we filed out one by one in a straight line onto the gym floor. The crowd grew silent, and I began wondering what they were thinking. Were they amazed how sixty-two girls could all dance together? Did they think the dance would look bad, and we would be off count? Well it did not matter what they thought because suddenly the music boomed and it was our time to shine and show off our hard work. The first group of girls danced into formation as we rippled off to form four straight lines. Then, all sixty-two girls began dancing together to the beat of the music. We were in sync, and not one person missed a step or a beat. Before I even noticed, we were in the last formation of the dance. I began thinking to myself that this would be the last time I would ever do this dance. I knew I had to end strong, so my team would be proud. Then, the last word, “Jai Ho,” sounded, and we hit our ending pose. I knew the dance was perfect looking around at the parents, the crowd, and most importantly the judges that gave us a standing ovation. At that very moment, I felt so proud of my team and I felt even more privileged to call myself a Carmelette. It seemed unreal that we had just performed our winning dance, Jai Ho, for the last time ever. As we walked off the stage, still in perfect lines, we all began hugging each other. We could not contain our excitement, and as we walked into the dressing room, tears were shed. Our parents and of course Mrs. Doran were so proud of us. As we walked back to the section that we sit in, we were greeted with applause and even some happy tears from our parents. I wished for that moment to last forever.
 

Then, it was finally time for the most nerve racking yet the most enjoyable part of the competition, the awards. After the judges tallied the scores, Ashley Bowman’s obnoxious voice instructed us to sit on the floor as a team. We rushed onto the floor hoping we would get a front spot right in front of the trophy table. However, since we have sixty-two girls, it is hard to fit in the front. Shortly after we were settled, Ashley Bowman began to speak into the microphone. She began by congratulating the teams and thanking all the dancers for participating in the competition. Then, she began reading out the awards. She gave out all of the awards for the individual divisions, and then she proceeded by giving out the overall awards. Finally, the time that we had all been waiting for had finally arrived. Ashley explained what the sweepstakes award was and the requirements each team must have to qualify for the sweepstakes award. All sixty-two of us grasped each other’s sweating hands. The adrenaline was pumping inside of our bodies. We were just hoping that all of our hard work had finally paid off. The whole Cajundome grew quiet, and we squeezed each other’s sweating hands a little harder. We silently prayed that in just a few seconds and then we heard Ashley say, “And the 2015-2016 Division III Sweepstakes Award goes to….” She paused for a few seconds, and we all put our heads down. Then all of a sudden she said, “The Carmelettes!” We all jumped up to our feet in excitement and only seconds later we fell onto each other in a dog pile. We cheered, screamed, cried, and hugged until we finally had to part our ways after our big victory.
 

Even after three years of being a member of the Carmelette Dance Team, I had never before until that moment been so proud to call myself a Carmie. The thoughts that I had rushing through my head and the feelings I felt were surreal. We all finally realized that our long practice hours during the summer and Christmas had finally paid off. January 17th, the day that we became known as State Champs, will be a day that I will never forget. The feeling of being a State Champion with my second family is the best feeling in the world. During this time, I learned that hard work pays off. I will forever cherish the moment of being able to hear Ashley Bowman exclaim that the Carmelettes were the Sweepstakes Champions.