QND, QHS pom teams win championships at Illinois Drill Team Association competition

SPRINGFIELD — Winning a 10th Illinois Drill Team Association Class A pom championship on Saturday in the Bank of Springfield Center was certainly special for the Quincy Notre Dame pom team. 

However, QND coach Jennifer Duesterhaus said this title was particularly rewarding after the way the team saw its nine-year championship streak end last year.

“The girls were so excited,” Duesterhaus said. “Just the atmosphere, all the other teams supporting one another cheering, you feed off that. You get your energy from the crowd. Being in person just makes it so much better. You could see the smiles on their faces. It was just a whole different environment.”

The Quincy High School pom team also won a state championship in the Class AAA division. QHS was the only team to compete in that division.

“You still have to meet a criteria to claim the title,” QHS coach Debby Bradshaw said. “Many schools aren’t competing because of COVID, but the fact is, you have to meet a criteria to be able to claim that state title. That was still a challenge and a goal for us to do that.”

The 2021 competition was performed virtually. Teams performed in their own gyms with no fans allowed to watch, and participants had to wear masks. A video of the performance was recorded and submitted to judges.

“(Finishing third) last year was hard,” Duesterhaus said. “We normally like to do pom passes. We punch our pictures (use their poms to create a picture or word) to create our storylines. With COVID last year, we weren’t able to stand within six feet of each other. We couldn’t exchange our poms.

“My team has 20 girls on it, and usually we compete against teams with 12 or 14 girls. So when my girls were six feet apart, we took up the whole floor. I had to stand so far back in the gym (to show everybody in the recording). So we definitely like being in person and do the typical pom requirements.”

The IDTA has approximately 140 dance and flag teams representing junior high school, junior varsity and varsity programs from more than 115 schools. QND competed against five teams in the Class A pom division.

Going back to the old rules and performing in front of a large crowd energized Notre Dame.

“Hearing your team named as the winner is amazing. It never gets old,” Duesterhaus said. “We never think we’re going to get it. We sit there and worry just like everybody else. When you hear your name, it’s just a huge relief. You’re so excited. You’re so happy. We are so proud of our girls for overcoming so much after all the crazy rules and stuff we had to follow for the last almost two years. It was just pure excitement.”

Championships are awarded in multiple categories at the IDTA event, and the score the QND pom squad received was higher than any score for any team in any category.

Duesterhaus also learned on Saturday she was inducted into the IDTA Hall of Fame. Her teams at QND have won 10 state championships, plus trophies for second place and third place, in her 12 seasons as coach.

“I had no idea,” she said. “I was very shocked and very honored.”