Sure, a lot of collegiettes know how to break it down at the club, and everyone loves to copy PSY’s moves when “Gangnam Style” comes on the radio, but there are some collegiettes who really excel when it comes to dancing—members of college dance teams. You may have seen them at football and basketball games, sometimes waving pom-poms but always looking like superstars. We’ve gathered a list of the best dance teams in the country. Check ‘em out!
1. The Rangerettes
School: Kilgore College, Kilgore, Texas
Members: 71
Why they’re on our list: Created in 1939, the Rangerettes are the first college drill team in the world—and widely known as the best. They’re also world-famous; they’ve performed in places all over the globe such as Venezuela, Paris, Singapore, Dublin, and Hong Kong. They’ve also performed at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and several football bowl games.
2. Towson University Dance Team
School: Towson University, Towson, Maryland
Members: 30-40
Why they’re on our list: The Towson dance team has won 14 consecutive National Dance Alliance (NDA) national championships—seriously. Their most recent title was in the Dance Division I category, for which they also won an award for innovative choreography.
3. The Cougarettes
School: Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah
Members: 20
Why they’re on our list: The Cougarettes have won 10 NDA championships, including winning the 2012 Hip Hop IA category. They also won innovative choreography for their hip hop routine and took 2nd place in the Dance Division IA category. The Cougarettes have performed in places such as Prague, the Czech Republic, and the 2002 Winter Olympics.
4. The Ladybirds
School: University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky
Members: around 20
Why they’re on our list: The Ladybirds were NDA champions in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, and most recently in 2012 for the Dance Open Division IA category, for which they won an innovative choreography award. The team has also placed in the top five in national competitions for 13 of the past 19 years.
5. The McLennan Community College Dance Company
School: McLennan Community College, Waco, Texas
Members: 19
Why they’re on our list: The McLennan dance team has won five first places at the NDA Championships, most recently in the Hip Hop Division II category in 2012. They also won third place for Dance Division III in 2012. The team has won numerous awards in pas American Dance/Drill team Schools Collegiate Championships and was recognized for having a high collective GPA.
6. Baker University Dance Team
School: Baker University, Baldwin City, Kansas
Members: 9
Why they’re on our list: The Wildcat dance team just won its second first place in the NAIA Dance Small category at the NDA national competition in 2012 (they also won it in 2011). For that category Baker was also named as the team with the most innovative choreography. The team competed in hip hop for the first time in 2012 and took home 11th place.
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7. Jack Attack
School: Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, Texas
Members: 25-40
Why they’re on our list: Jack Attack is specifically a hip hop dance team—in fact, Stephen F. Austin State University is the first university to have a separate hip hop team in addition to a standard dance team. Jack Attack most recently took home first place in the 2012 NDA Championship for Hip Hop as well as third place in the Dance Open Division I category. The team also won fourth place in Division I Hip Hop in 2011.
8. The St. Ambrose University Dance Team
School: St. Ambrose University, Davenport, Iowa
Members: 26
Why they’re on our list: The St. Ambrose University Dance Team most recently won first place in the NAIA Dance Large category at the NDA Nationals in 2012 as well as fifth place in the Hip Hop Division II category. They also won first place in Hip Hop and Jazz and Second Place in the Pom category at the Iowa State Dance Team Competition in 2011 and 2010. And, in the ultimate display of girl power, the team was the first athletic team at St. Ambrose to win a national championship.
9. The Lionettes
School: Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania
Members: 27
Why they’re on our list: The Lionettes won their first NDA championship in 2012, taking home first place in the Dance Division IA category as well as an award for innovative choreography. The team has gotten close to a championship in past years—in 2009, they won fourth place; in 2010, third place; and in 2011, fourth place.
10. University of Minnesota Dance Team
School: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota
Members: 19
Why they’re on our list: The UM dance team has won the Universal Dance Association National Dance Team Championship for the past three years, placing first in the jazz and pom categories. Three members of the team also got the chance to travel to Mexico City in August 2012 to host dance clinics at the Dragones Dream Center.
11. Charlotte 49ers Gold Dusters
School: The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina
Members: About 20
Why they’re on our list: The Gold Dusters most recently took home second place at NDA nationals for the Hip Hop Division I category as well as the innovative choreography award for that category. They also won seventh place in the Dance Open Division I category. At past NDA summer camps, the Gold Dusters have won multiple awards such as Most Spirited in 2010 and 2011 and First Place Team Dance in 2010 and 2011. Three of their members—Grace Wallace, Kloi Irving, and Haley Johnston—were named NDA All Americans in 2011.
Who was your favorite group, collegiettes? Does your school have an amazing group we didn’t mention in this list? Let us know in the comments below!
Photo credit: Rep Image