It was an exhilarating day for competitors. The thunderous speaker stood quietly against the roar of the expectant spectators, dancers, cheerleaders, and coaches.

The State Spirit Competition was recently held on Jan. 23, 2026, at the Wyoming Ford Center in Casper.

Both Powell High School dance and cheer teams had a blast at the competition. 

“I think the best part of the competition was seeing the other teams,” sophomore Brooke Horning said. “[I liked] how much fun the dance team had just being there.”

Students also learned that captivating a crowd can positively impact a team’s mindset, and winning a trophy is icing on that cake.

“I felt very prepared going into state since we were practicing almost five days a week,” Horning said. “I felt very confident as well going in; I really think we had a shot to place and win.”

Competitions are hard work, with planning, activities, and practices sometimes going unrecognized.

“The night before the competition, we ate dinner as a team,” said freshman Alexis Scott. “We also made clips with messages on them to hype people up before they went to perform.”

For rookies, the day was ceaseless with anticipation and desire for fresh perspectives.

“I’ve had so much experience performing in front of huge crowds, so cheering in front of everyone was no problem,” freshman Zaphira Paul said. “Otherwise, everything else was a new experience because I had never cheered at a competition before. 

The dance team placed sixth out of seven in the hip-hop category with 65.2 points and placed last in jazz with a score of 65.7. 

“Overall, we did pretty well because we got 3rd,” junior Brooklynn McConnel said. “I am really proud of that.”

The cheer team finished with a score of 83.2. Although they had to share the third-place title with Cody, they were still overjoyed with their performance.

“I felt disappointed after realizing that we didn’t place,” Horning said. “When we started to head home, I was very ecstatic because we went out there and tried our best.”

Trophies are obtainable for anyone, but the memories that come with these experiences can’t be rejected or won with a score.

“After the competition, we talked and tried to cheer each other up,” Scott said. “We didn’t get the place that we wanted, but we still enjoyed the time we spent together as a team.”

Perseverance and resilience are some of the greatest skills to develop during high school. Needless to say, the State Spirit Competition will return again next year, and athletes will continue to learn from their mistakes. 

“I would absolutely love to do the state spirit competition again,” Paul said. “Cheer is a part of my life, so I’m definitely going to give it all I’ve got every year.”