Dance Team Ready for NDA Nationals
4/6/2022 2:23:00 PM | Dance
Pioneers are coming off two top-five finishes in 2021.
FAIRFIELD, Conn. – After two great performances at the 2021 National Dance Alliance national championships, the Sacred Heart University dance team has set the bar high for this year's event. The Pioneers kick off the competition Thursday at the Bandshell and Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Fla.
The first event for Sacred Heart is the Division I Jazz Competition at 11:33 a.m. on Thursday. The next day, the Pioneers take the floor at 7:37 p.m. for the Division I Hip Hop event.
The 2020 event was canceled because of CoVID, but the Pioneers more than made up for it in 2021. They placed second in hip hop, the best finish in school history, then came in third during their first time in the jazz division.
With the full complement of teams competing this year, Sacred Heart knows it will need to have its best performance, but last year's showing gave the team confidence going into this year. The team has been practicing since the beginning of the school year to be ready for this moment.
"It's a big commitment between practice, fundraising and overcoming injuries, but I feel confident," third-year head coach Reina Van Florcke said. "I want the team to go down to Daytona and feel confidence with their preparation and be satisfied when we walk off the floor because they've given it everything they had and left it on the floor."
Of the 24 dancers competing this week, 13 are back from last season, but Van Florcke noted some were alternates so this will be their first time competing at nationals. She said this year's team has a lot of talented first-year dancers so the program should be a national contender for years to come.
The first event for Sacred Heart is the Division I Jazz Competition at 11:33 a.m. on Thursday. The next day, the Pioneers take the floor at 7:37 p.m. for the Division I Hip Hop event.
The 2020 event was canceled because of CoVID, but the Pioneers more than made up for it in 2021. They placed second in hip hop, the best finish in school history, then came in third during their first time in the jazz division.
With the full complement of teams competing this year, Sacred Heart knows it will need to have its best performance, but last year's showing gave the team confidence going into this year. The team has been practicing since the beginning of the school year to be ready for this moment.
"It's a big commitment between practice, fundraising and overcoming injuries, but I feel confident," third-year head coach Reina Van Florcke said. "I want the team to go down to Daytona and feel confidence with their preparation and be satisfied when we walk off the floor because they've given it everything they had and left it on the floor."
Of the 24 dancers competing this week, 13 are back from last season, but Van Florcke noted some were alternates so this will be their first time competing at nationals. She said this year's team has a lot of talented first-year dancers so the program should be a national contender for years to come.
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