Spartan Cheer and Dance Teams Place Top-10 at UCA/UDA National Championships
1/19/2022 1:45:00 PM | General
ORLANDO, Fla. - This past weekend saw the Michigan State cheer and dance teams compete at the UCA/UDA National Championship in Orlando, Florida, with multiple top-10 placings between the Spartan squads at the ESPN Wide World of Sports.
Competing in Division 1A for the first time since 2019-20 after not being able to attend last season's championship due to COVID-19, the Green and White had four of their five routines make it to the final day of competition.
The cheer team competed in two categories, gameday and traditional, advancing to the finals in both despite 20 newcomers on the roster. In the finals, the Spartans placed ninth with their gameday performance, a combined 28-member routine that features the school's fight song, a sideline routine and a timeout routine. For the traditional finals, MSU had 18 of its national team members compete on the floor in a routine that highlighted overall athleticism and skillset, as the Spartans earned 10th place. Both placings are among the best in recent team history.
"Having the opportunity to wear the Green and White at a national competition has been one of the biggest privileges of our cheerleading careers," said seniors Keegan Seifert and Olivia Thiel. "We feel overwhelming pride to be able to continue and enhance the legacy of the cheer alumni before us."
The dance team competed with three routines while in Orlando, as all three reached the semifinal round before having two routines in the finals. The dance Spartans' gameday routine, with all 25 dance team members competing together to showcase the same gameday traditions as the cheer team, advanced to the semifinals but ended up outside final placings. For the jazz and pom routines, 18-member squads showed technique, athleticism, acrobatic skills and performance through the art of dance, as both routines earned Top-15 placements on the last day of competition.
"Representing our school and dancing for each other is what motivated us this year," said senior Ava Giannetti, who competed in all three dance routines. "We finally had the opportunity to be at Nationals again and relished every second of it. It was an indescribable feeling that can only be told through our months of hard work and determination of greatness."
Choreographed by assistant coach Stacey Del Valle and dance team alumnus Shelby Fenn, the Spartan jazz routine took home 13th overall, while the pom routine choreographed by senior captain Emily Goy was the highest placing of any MSU performance, finishing fifth in the nation.
"I am so proud that I got to go as a dancer and a choreographer," Goy said. "We overcame many obstacles and we had the time of our lives no matter the place we finished. Our team works so hard and we are so tight."
In total, 53 cheer and dance student-athletes competed and represented Michigan State University with pride at the national championships.Â