Banner Day at Royal for Dance and Drill Teams

Ben Mendoza admitted he was a little nervous in the silent seconds before the music sounded his cue to bolt up in a spinning pirouette.

Sitting on the polished wood floor of Royal High School’s gymnasium in Simi Valley, the 17-year-old member of the Saugus High School Dance and Drill Team quickly went through his routine, “sticking” the sometimes difficult transitions between leaps, airborne cartwheels and plies.

“I think everybody’s a little nervous before they start,” he said after the self-choreographed performance elicited roaring applause from the hundreds of spectators. “But that’s always good because it gets you going.”

Ben was one of more than 200 students from 20 Southern California high schools who competed Saturday in the fourth annual Royal Spring Classic at Royal High School.

The early part of Saturday’s competition was devoted to individual repertoires, some of which included the use of flags and plastic scabbards.

Royal High’s Katie Nuttall spent an anxious hour before her performance practicing her routine outside on the school quad.

Counting silently to herself, the 16-year-old lieutenant captain of the Highlander squad marched through the act, occasionally throwing doubles and triples--dance-and-drill lingo for throwing a spinning flag, baton or rifle into the air.

The afternoon part of the event featured the team portion of the contest, with a dozen schools vying for top honors.

As host, Royal High’s dance-and-drill team wasn’t allowed to compete for any of the foot-high trophies awarded at the event. But Katie said it didn’t matter to her or anyone else on the team.

“It’s more relaxed and we don’t have to worry about points,” the red-haired junior said. “Besides, we’ve already been in enough competitions this year.”

Royal High’s 22-member squad has won all eight contests it entered this year. At the 30th annual Miss Dance Drill Team U.S.A. Pageant held in March in Long Beach, the squad came home 1997’s California State Champions.

Quentin Rice, Royal High’s dance-and-drill team director, said even though his team didn’t win any trophies, the event was still important.

“Besides using it as a fund-raiser so we can go to competitions, it’s also so the community can see what we’re up to,” he said. “And anyway, we’ve got a real high-caliber event this year with some of the strongest squads out there, so it’s a lot of fun for everyone here.”