Utah Valley University’s (UVU) Dance Team placed first in the Jazz dance category by outscoring all 65 teams in all of the five collegiate divisions at the 2022 NCA/NDA Collegiate Cheer and Dance Championship at Daytona Beach, Florida, on April 8.
Utah Valley University’s (UVU) Dance Team placed first in the Jazz dance category by outscoring all 65 teams in all of the five collegiate divisions at the 2022 NCA/NDA Collegiate Cheer and Dance Championship at Daytona Beach, Florida, on April 8.
In addition, the combined UVU Cheer and Dance teams, along with mascot Willy the Wolverine and the Green Man Group drumline, placed first in the Division 1 Game Day category. In this category, multiple teams from the same university are judged on how well they perform together. This was the first time the teams had competed collectively, resulting in a first-place finish.
The UVU Cheer Team also placed third in the Division 1 Advanced All-Girl category and the Dance Team placed second in the Division 1 Hip Hop category.
“The talent and atmosphere at the NCA College national competition is electric,” said Kati Marsing, UVU’s Spirit Squad director. “And our students were simply amazing. Their hard work, grit, and determination paid off with exceptional performances. We are very proud of them.”
UVU student Emma Heiner, who is majoring in art and design and has been on the cheer team for two years, said, “I love going to Daytona to compete. I love the atmosphere and the people. Everyone here has the ambition to be the best and they are doing it with the people they love. Everyone worked hard to get here.”
The UVU Spirit Squad is unique in that it is part of the UVU Department of Student Leadership and Involvement. The focus is not only helping the students develop their performance skills but in helping them develop leadership skills to be strong contributing members of their communities.
“It was worth every hour of practice and all the hard work,” said Kaleb Rodriguez, a first-year student majoring in university studies. “The competition has been a great experience — a very educational experience for me to be out of state performing.”
Category Results for UVU Teams:
Game Day Results
Dance: Jazz Results*
Dance, Hip Hop Results
Cheer, Advanced All-Girl Results
*In addition to placing first in the Jazz Dance category, the team also received the top score overall in the national competition.
The UVU teams entered the competition in five categories: Dance, Jazz; Dance, Hip Hop; Cheer, Advanced All-Girl; Cheer, Stunt group; and Game Day. There are twelve performance categories:
In addition, there are five divisions in which the schools compete depending on school size, number of team members, and level of competition — Division, 1, Division 1A, Division 2, Junior College, and NAIA.
The UVU coaches include Kati Marsing, Spirit Squad director; Trista Tempest, Spirit Squad assistant coordinator; Emily Vowles, Cheer coach; Curtis Finnegan, assistant Cheer coach; Jamie Crowther, Dance coach; and Kenton Nielson, drumline coach.
