November’s Athlete of the Month: Nya Owusu

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Sophomore Nya Owusu has been selected as the November Athlete of the Month.

Ivy Lam, Senior Feature Editor

Owusu was a dancer before her debut in colorguard. She began her career in dance the same year she moved to Florida, competed in dance events at eight years old and began color guard at the age of eleven.

“My mom wanted me to join an activity when I moved to Florida, and I decided to do some dancing. When I started it, I didn’t really like it as much, but I loved performing in front of people, so I stayed in it,” Owusu said. “What I love most about it is being free and just letting go.”

This year’s Eagle Regiment show was titled “Winter’s End,” a story about an ice queen who brought fire and warmth to her kingdom and later transformed into the fire queen. Owusu was selected to play the role of the ice queen.

“Our former instructors already knew most of us from the previous season and they just decided on choosing me for ice queen, I guess because I had the dance skills for it,” Owusu said.

The Eagle Regiment Color Guard performs in this year's show "Winter's End." Photo courtesy of the Eagle Regiment Facebook page
The Eagle Regiment Color Guard performs in this year’s show “Winter’s End.” Photo courtesy of the Eagle Regiment Facebook page

Throughout the season, Owusu’s teammates had nothing but kind words to describe her.

“[Nya is] a very nice person. She’s very energetic. Whenever anyone’s tired, she like always lifts them up. She’s always smiling. She puts a lot of work into what she does, and she really enjoys it and I would like to be like her one day,” sophomore Gianna Squiccirini said.

Owusu loves volunteering, traveling and learning different dance skills from a variety of choreographers.

“[Nya is] one of the strongest people I know, like physically and mentally. She’s just incredible, like there’s nothing that she can’t do. As long as I’ve known her, she’s been incredibly strong and academically insane,” sophomore Camila Fraser said.

Throughout the marching season, the color guard rehearsed nearly every day. Time management, focus and dedication are some of the attributes needed to be a part of the Eagle Regiment.

“[Nya is] probably like the smartest, most hardworking, nicest person. We could literally practice for hours and be exhausted and you’ll see Nya going full out, she’s crazy,” sophomore Nicole Meoni said.

Another instance of Owusu’s dancing ability was seen on Sunday, Nov. 17, in Dallas, Texas.

“I went to Dallas to do this dance convention called Intrigue Dance Convention. And you basically take a bunch of dance classes from different dance choreographers. It was for three days and I got a scholarship from the convention,” Owusu said. “I can go back to any of their conventions to dance again for the season.”

Although Owusu is only a sophomore, she is well known for her enthusiasm, kindness and bubbly personality. Her involvement with color guard has left her with positive memories from trips, rehearsals and competitions. She also feels that all of her hard work has definitely paid off.

“[Whenever you’re] involved in an athletic activity, [you have to] make sacrifices to be involved in activities with athletics, like marching band,” Owusu said. “Keep ahead in the game. And don’t get distracted by things that are not worth getting distracted by.”

Owusu plans to continue participating in color guard during future marching band seasons at MSD. She hopes to further expand her dancing abilities and eventually become a professional dancer.