Senior Vanessa Verheuvel has been chosen as the McIntosh Athlete of the Week for the week of October 8, 2012.

Vanessa started dancing in elementary school. In her freshman year, she began dancing for McIntosh and also for a competitive team at Carla’s Dance Factory. Being on multiple teams and handling coursework is a load to handle. Verheuvel said, “I basically rely on my mom to make sure nothing gets too crazy.”

When asked who has influenced her dancing career, she stated, “Definitely, Mrs. Yarbrough. She’s constantly been by my side pushing me these past four years.” Along with helping her to improve, Vanessa said that Ms. Yarbrough has made her realize how important passion is and an outstanding work ethic in being successful.

When asked about the craziest thing a coach has ever done during practice, Vanessa said, “One practice right before competition, everyone was real intense. When we all set up in our beginning formation and waited for the music to begin, Carmen put her game face on, gave us a pep talk, and then turned the music on. To our surprise, it was not our competition music, it was the Wobble. We got to spend the beginning of practice wobbling as a team. It was great.”

Verheuvel said that her favorite dance season was her competition season during her sophomore year. “I improved a lot that year, and we also received our highest ranking at nationals ever, 7^th,” Vanessa said. She said that her favorite memory was walking from underneath the Disney Castle and onto the dance floor at the national competition. “The intensity and excitement at that moment was unbelievable,” Vanessa said.

Unlike various other sports, college dance teams aren’t allowed to recruit. However, Vanessa said she plans to attend Florida State University next year and major in Interior Design. Her dream job is to be the head of a design firm, and she wants to live in a big city.