Ridge House defeated its opponents after a close battle to win the annual lip sync competition at Hayes.

On Tuesday Sep. 30, lip sync finals were held to determine which House would start the school year off at the top of the leaderboard. The four Houses that qualified to compete in this event were Lockport, Sugar Grove, Fairview, and Ridge.

The competition was close, with just one point separating the top three Houses: Ridge, Sugar Grove and Fairview, respectively. For their second consecutive year, Ridge was declared the winner.

Their routine consisted of a remix of Kesha and Usher, signs, flags, large amounts of choreography and matching outfits.

Spanish teacher and Ridge adviser Paige Smith helped guide the House to success.

“[Lip sync is a] great outlet for student creativity,” Smith said. “I wanted to make sure it was more student-led because it is all about the students in House.”

With more student leadership, Ridge took the stage with high numbers in participation. This allowed for more diverse ideas to be implemented into the routine.

Junior Ella McMahon was one of the many students who helped choreograph the performance.

“[Lip sync is] so important because it is the first [competition that] everyone wants to win,” McMahon said. “A lot of effort and energy is put into it by every House.”

In order to be victorious, Ridge followed a similar plan as to what they did the previous year. The House came together and brainstormed potential song choices. If there were any conflicting ideas, they would be settled by seniority. Though they lost some seniors since last year, several underclassmen and returning members stepped up to help their House.

Students then collaborated with each other, whether it was in or out of their House period, to create an entertaining routine.

“I think it’s a great way to get to know new students,” Smith said. “Especially incoming freshmen.”

A couple of students, like McMahon, produced and taught choreography to other members. They practiced the moves several times and corrected any possible errors that did not seem clean before their performances.

Aside from dancing, students made sure they wore matching outfits on show days.

“We wore blue jeans, our red shirts, hats and sunglasses, so we would look more uniform,” McMahon said.

Ridge’s collaboration and efforts towards their lip sync routine has paid off and now they sit at the top of the House leaderboard. With having these first points early, they hope to continue their success in other major events throughout the year like powderpuff.

“We just want to go event by event,” McMahon said. “[We need to] do the best we can and just focus on what’s happening now.”

Teachers in Ridge are encouraging all students to participate in the exciting activities House brings to Hayes.

“It’s really important to have a strong foundation, so that they can continue to carry on the tradition,” Smith said.