This year, the dancing Sequoits have experienced a lot of new change, one of which includes two new coaches. The pair has essentially grown together and their unique bond shows, whether at practice or a performance.

The varsity head coach Samantha Kanya is an Antioch dance team alumna and a former captain. A twist to Kanya’s story is that her counterpart, Kelly Taylor, was previously her coach at Antioch Community High School, who is now serving as the assistant coach. One word Taylor would use to describe their bond is “synergy.” The two are constantly feeding off of one another’s energy and making each other better in the end.

“It feels like home being back in the dance room, and getting to do this is truly a dream,” Kanya said. “When we first took these positions we were both very excited and felt this was a natural fit.”

Kanya and Taylor’s return to Antioch dance is something neither of them expected, but both are incredibly excited to be back. The pair has high hopes for the girls this year and cannot wait to make a bigger name for the team than ever before.

“Antioch dance as a program has a tradition of excellence, I remember being in high school and I would watch this massive presence dance perfectly all the time,” Taylor said. “This community feel and buy in was just different than other places, it made people want to strive to be excellent all the time. You see that absolutely today just as much as ever.”

While it is only the start of the season, these coaches see what the Antioch dance team is capable of and cannot wait to embark on another journey with their team.