Hoover High varsity, JV Buccanettes win national championships

The Hoover High School Buccanettes varsity and junior varsity dance teams both came away as national champions in the Dance Team Union competition this month.

It was the first time any of the dance teams from Hoover City Schools have won a national championship, said Alicia Wilbanks, the varsity Buccanette coach.

Hoover’s varsity team won in the small varsity hip hop category with a performance to a mix of hard-hitting, fast-paced songs, Wilbanks said. The team was one of 10 competing in the virtual competition, which was separate from the seven teams competing at the in-person competition in Orlando, she said.

Hoover’s junior varsity Buccanettes, coached by Jennifer Williams, won in the jazz competition with an emotional performance to Louisa Johnson’s “Forever Young,” Wilbanks said. They were competing against five other teams in the virtual competition.

The varsity Buccanettes also placed sixth among 11 teams in the large varsity jazz competition. It was the highest finish in a national jazz competition for the varsity Buccanettes, Wilbanks said. They were competing against teams from all over the country, including Alabama, Florida, Nebraska, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, Indiana and Oklahoma, she said.

“I can’t even begin to put into words how proud I am of them,” Wilbanks said.

The dance teams had a very difficult year, dealing with hybrid school schedules and quarantine issues, she said.

“They pushed each other. They just handled it with real dedication to the team and each other,” Wilbanks said. “I’m incredibly proud of their hard work and overcoming so many challenges.”

One of the varsity Buccanettes, Annabelle Kemp, had a serious hip injury just after making the team and was unable to perform for most of the season, Wilbanks said. But she continued to dress out for every practice and was a real inspiration to the other girls, Wilbanks said.

For the national competition, her doctor cleared her to perform the jazz routine but not the hip hop routine, which is why Hoover competed in the “small varsity” division in hip hop, Wilbanks said. The cutoff for “small varsity” teams was 13 girls, and without Kemp, that’s how many were on the Hoover varsity team.

Hoover’s dance teams competed in the virtual competition instead of the in-person competition because the school system had a ban on out-of-state travel due to COVID-19. Their routines were recorded toward the end of March — two to three weeks before the in-person competition.

Then on April 10, both the in-person and virtual competitions were shown on the Internet, and the winners were announced. Because the Hoover girls didn’t get to travel, they had a “staycation” together that weekend, doing a lot of activities in the Birmingham area.

Wilbanks said she was especially proud of the five seniors on the team this year: Evie Barakat, Lilly Covington, Jordyn Godsey, Abbey Smith and Sarah Turner.

“They were the perfect puzzle pieces for each other. They fit together so perfectly, and they were such great leaders,” Wilbanks said. They helped provide synergy for the team and were extremely dedicated, setting a great example for the rest of the team, she said.

Other members of the varsity team were Kemp, Arden Haynes, Emily Hofmann, Madelyne Kurz, Madelyn Roe, Ava Slocum, Kylie Watson, Julia Wright and Elaina Wyatt.

Members of the junior varsity team were Kaitlynn Ball, Morgan Fleming, Cadence Hisey, Chasely Jasper, Emma Kathryn Jones, Anna Kizzire, Kara Langley, Ellison Parker, Kylie Pate, Olivia Payne, Penny Rose Pearson, Allie Russell, Emily Shirey, Sydnie Watson and Lauren Wiley.

The Buccanettes plan to have a ceremony in which the girls will be presented with national championship jackets and rings, Wilbanks said.

Editor's Note: This article was updated at 4:57 p.m. to correct the last name of Annabelle Kemp.