Blood, sweat, tears and dance proved to be a winning combination for Cal State Long Beach’s dance team. The dance team landed first place at this year’s UCA/UDA College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championship in Orlando, Fla.
The team went up against 23 other division I teams from all over the country at the championship on Jan. 16 through Jan. 18. Their skill and commitment to dance helped the women squash their opposition.
“It was an honor to be national champions,” said dance team member Amanda Kerby. “Not only did we do great on the score sheets, but comments we received from other teams and the judges made it apparent we amazed a lot of people.”
The CSULB Dance Team has been in high ranking for years but it had been eight years since they had taken first. They spent three years coming in second to California State University Fullerton.
“Our hometown rival has always been Fullerton who has dominated the past couple years, so it was great being able to break that losing streak,” Kerby said.
CSULB’s interpretation of “My Strongest Suit,” from the Broadway musical “Aida,” earned the team a total score of 695.5 after the semi-final performance. They were one point over second-place holder, CSUF. However, the team’s performance during finals, received a total of 718, beating out the closest competition by 10 points.
“The score sheets say we won, yes, but the part that meant the most to us was the fact that the other teams saw us as the champions as well,” said team member Morgan Mulholand. “After we received the title and did our interview with the news crew we came out from back stage and a group of three or so teams actually stopped what they were doing and applauded for us.”
The team had been preparing their routine since the summer of 2008. Coach Rey Lozano brought in guest choreographers to help the girls piece the dance together. They practiced three days a week for three hours at a time. As the competition got closer, the ladies moved up their practices to seven days a week.
Members agreed that the time they spent together helped their skills.
“I think we’ve all improved individually to become better dancers; but we’ve also grown together as a team,” said team member Meredith Oliver. “Part of the reason we won was because of the bond we share,”
Every team member is trained in various styles of dance from ballet to hip-hop. The majority of the dancers have been working on their skills for more than 12 years. Their schedules require they take classes in the morning and then dance the night away.
“Sometimes it gets difficult practicing so much and keeping up with the school work, but dance is my passion and I don’t think I can imagine college without it,” said team member Kayla Lynk.
Although the girls only performed one jazz routine at the Orlando nationals, they are preparing for more. They are currently working on a hip-hop routine for their next national competition in Anaheim.
Team members include: Justene Monje, Jessica Cassidy, Martha Hamilton, Morgan Mulholand, Kelsey Saunders, Bianca Poncedeleon, Kayla Lynk, Meredith Oliver, Brooke Axup, Lindsay Riley, Amanda Kerby, Karissa Zamora, Taryn Falcetti and team captain Lindsay Bauer.