LHS Dance Team Places 25th At IHSA State Finals

LEMONT, IL — The Lemont High School Dance Team placed 25th at the 2022 IHSA Class 2A Competitive Dance State Finals, which were contested on Jan. 28-29 at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington. Head coach Beth Purcell’s team made its third straight state finals appearance, and its seventh in nine seasons, the school said in a release.

Lemont posted a score of 77.80 in the preliminary round of state finals competition, the school said. The top 12 teams from the preliminary round advance to compete on the second day.

Lemont advanced to the state finals by placing third with a score of 83.57 at the first of two IHSA Geneva sectionals. Hinsdale South (84.77) won the IHSA sectional, while Batavia (83.72), Richards (82.83), Oak Forest (81.13) and Benet Academy (80.57) also qualified for state finals competition from Lemont’s sectional, the school said. The top six teams from each sectional advance to the IHSA State Finals.

Purcell’s team includes seniors Natalia Ciesla, Giselle Glotzbach, Annmarie Pesavento and Alexa Potaczek; juniors Amanda Bechtlofft, Gabriella Detres, Jill Ferguson, Madeline Glotzbach, Hannah Tomala, Kaitlyn Tomala and Angeleah Vallianatos; and sophomores Isabella Canali, Grace Gawenda and Emily Manalli.

Lemont has qualified for the state finals seven times (2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022) since Competitive Dance became an IHSA-sponsored sport during the 2012-13 school year, the school said. It has finished among the state’s top 20 teams within its class three times, including a program-best 14th-place finish in 2017.