This past weekend, from April 6-10, our very own West Virginia University dance team took home first place in the National Dance Alliance Collegiate Championship. This is the second consecutive year they have achieved this most prestigious title. The girls were up against just over 250 teams from colleges all over the nation.
Along with hard work, determination and raw talent, Samantha Freels, a junior on the team, attributes much of their success to the team’s unbreakable strong bond and genuine love for each other.
“There are lots of things we do that are somewhat ritualistic and we really bond as a team. We have meetings every night in our coach’s room where, along with motivation and encouragement about the competition, there are always gifts and letters, especially for the seniors. It becomes very emotional because this competition is the last time we are performing as a team,” she said.
Prior to this capstone competition, the team works hard all year round to really make an outstanding name for themselves and the university’s dance program – so much so that they are now nationally known with high regard.
“We go through a lot during the year, and experience numerous ups and downs,” Freels said.
A big obstacle they faced before competition is funding. Since the competition takes place over a six-day period in Daytona, Fla., entering the competition is costly. The girls worked to get funding from anywhere they could including selling WVU dance team t-shirts (which are super cute, and really affordable!).
At the competition, however, all of their hard work and effort paid off with the judges. They rewarded the team with perfect 10’s in the categories of choreography, collegiate image, impression and performance, which furthered the girls’ efforts to put WVU’s dance program on the map.
But the best reward, Freels remarked, “was the experience of performing as a team and hearing the crowd cheer and knowing we danced it the best we could!”
*Photo credit: Amanda Freels