Simpson dance collects two first-place finishes

DES MOINES, Iowa -- For the first time in program history, the Simpson dance team captured two first-place finishes at the Iowa State Drill & Dance Team Association State Championships. The Storm also collected a second-place performance as the awards were announced Saturday, Dec. 5.

"I could not be prouder of the team's performances at the ISDTA competition," said head coach Lindsay Taylor. "It's been a challenging semester, but the dancers persevered and worked so hard to get here. I have a very talented and dedicated group of dancers and I'm excited to see what else they can accomplish this year." 

Simpson tallied gold in the hip-hop and pom divisions, and was just shy of earning another top honor in jazz. In hip-hop, the Storm ended with an average score of 84 to clip Buena Vista and tallied an 85.33 in pom to trim Central's 84.67. In jazz, the team received an average score of 91.5, which is 10 points higher than last year's performance.

The ISDTA State Championships were originally held on Nov. 19 with Simpson sending in video recordings of all three of its routines. The judges then scored the performances and announced the results during a virtual awards banquet on Saturday.

"Due to practice restrictions, we only had a little over a month of in-person full team practices to prepare for this competition, so for them to pull off two first-place titles and a second-place finish is something we are extremely proud of," Taylor said.

Simpson showed improvement from last year's championships after securing two second-place and one third-place finish in 2019. The Storm scored two points higher this year in hip-hop to earn their first gold in the discipline. A year after earning second in pom, Simpson rebounded to tally first.

To view the ISDTA State Championship full results, click HERE.