Po-Hi Steppers bring home multiple championships

The Ponca City High School Steppers brought home five National Championships from a dance competition in Texas.

The Ponca City team was named National Champions in the kick and military categories.

They were first runner up in both kick and pom categories.

They came in third in the large team division and out of the 120 teams that competed, the Steppers ranked ninth.

The team also received the sportsmanship award, which is voted on by other teams.

They were selected as the team with the best sportsmanship, welcoming and encouraging other teams.

The Po-Hi Stepper officers also competed in the officer division of Nationals.

They were named National Champions in the kick, pom and military categories and were second overall n the large team division.

The girls have to qualify for this at a summer camp and then all those who qualify will compete at the national level.

It was the American Dance and Drill team school competition held at the University of North Texas, which is the largest national competition in the country.

"My girls once again gave four wonderful team performances and three amazing officer performances at our National Competition this past weekend," said Po-Hi Stepper coach, Kristin Smith. "I am always honored that people in the crown who are not associated with the team in any way notice my girls year after year. When my girls came on the floor this year, a person in the stands turned to his wife and said, ‘ Ponca city is next. They are one of the very best teams in this entire competition.’ Comments like that mean so much and show that the hard work and effort my team puts in definitely pays off. The competition gets tougher every year, but my girls definitely hold their own. We face teams with budges that we could only dream of and yet the Hi-Steppers are judged as equal to or better than those teams year after year. I am honored to be the coach of the Po-Hi Steppers and I hope that Ponca City is proud of their accomplishments."