The UC dance team won the gold medal at the International Cheer Union National Championship last week. To revel and find out more about this awesome accomplishment, I talked to two members of the dance team. They are Toria Douglas
My life >>>> pic.twitter.com/MIIM3tKgQL
— Mrs.Moore (@Toria_Moore) April 25, 2014
And Ashley Herman
http://instagram.com/p/nMdTq2k3tD/#
I talked to Toria about the dance team’s trip to China and to Ashley about UC winning the National Championship in January. Those are also very great.
My questions are in bold.
You and the dance team just won the gold medal representing team USA. For the uninitiated, can you tell us about the event and how you ended up representing the country?
Ashley: The ICU is the International Cheer Union competition. ICU compromises of 105 member National Cheer Federations. Every year they pick a dance team to represent Team USA in pom, jazz, and the hip hop categories. The University of Cincinnati Dance Team was chosen to represent Team USA in the hip hop category this year. We sent in the tape of our Nationals routine and a panel of judges selected us for the hip hop category. Since February we were preparing for the competition and had to add 15 seconds to our routine. This year there were over 80 countries at the event.
Toria: The event is the International Cheer Union World Championship. For those who don’t know much about the dance world, it is kind of like the Olympics for dancers and cheerleaders. We applied for the position as Team USA and were selected after the national championship by a panel of judges.
You won in the hip hop category, something that you finished second in last year. Was getting back to this level a goal for the team?
AH: When we got the news we were selected as Team USA in hip hop for a second year in row, we were more than excited. It was the first time a team had been selected for Team USA two years in a row. Being the team to accomplish this was such a rewarding feeling. Our goal was to bring the USA hip hop title back to our country. USA had not won the hip hop category since 2011 when the University of Cincinnati represented Team USA.
TD: Absolutely, we always strive to be the best we can possibly be but getting the opportunity to bring home the gold metal after coming so close last year gave us a little more motivation I would say.
How great does it feel to accomplish the ultimate level of success?
AH: Winning the hip hop category at World’s was the most incredible feeling. You’re not only representing your school anymore, you’re representing your country and dancers that look up to your program and strive to be there one day. It’s an amazing feeling to bring home the gold for everyone. It’s very rewarding knowing all the hard work and hours put into practice was worth it.
TD: It feels amazing. Our team works extremely hard all season and to accomplish a goal so great really makes it all worth it.
This year saw you have the highest ranked dance team in the nation in hip hop. What came together for your amazing year?
AH: This year was a great year for the dance team because we became a family. It all started at the beginning of the year with our summer workouts and practices before camp. We became very close as a team right at the beginning. Our coaches also brought in a team motivator to start our year off in a positive way. He spoke to us about what a “Great” team is and how we could become the team we wanted to get the most out of our year together. Our coaches wanted us to succeed to this year just as much as the team wanted to. Our motto this year was, “Win together, Lose together.” No matter what competition we were competing at we wanted to leave it all out on the floor and give the best performance we could. That way win or lose we felt there was nothing else we could of done. We had a special team this year and I couldn’t of asked to win with a better group of girls.
TD: This is my third year on the team and right from the start I knew we were something special. We had 9 girls on our team who had never been to nationals, 7 of them being freshman. Most people would consider having so many new girls a “transition” year but that wasn’t the case here. We had such a hard working group of girls that all got along so well that everything kind of fell into place.
Where does this rank with your other great accomplishments as a member of the dance team?
AH: Winning the ICU competition along with the UDA college nationals this year was at the top of my accomplishments as a member of the dance team. Being able to win both competitions my senior year was the best way I could of ended things. I like to say I went out with a bang. It was an incredible year all together.
TD: This year completely takes the cake. We went to China and won the hip hop and jazz categories, won a national championship and brought home a gold metal at worlds. You really can’t get much better than that.
What can you tell us about the coaching staff?
AH: The coaching staff this year was very encouraging and supportive. They wanted us to have a successful year. They started off bringing in a motivational coach to start off the year with encouragement and positive vibes in our program. Continuing the year they pushed us to our limit at practice to make our routines the best they could be. They continued to have team bonding activities throughout the year to keep practices fun and keep our team close.
TD: We have 3 great coaches. Kelsey Moffe, Jen Bernier and Morgan Deitsch. Without them pushing us and keeping us motivated none of this could be possible. For team USA we were also under the direction of Alysia Ulfers, who was an amazing dance director for us. All of them put in long hours and support us in everything we do, they’ve helped create a sense of not just a team but a family.
What was the preparation like getting this routine ready?
AH: Our biggest preparation for getting this routine ready for the ICU competition was getting our stamina up. We had already competed the routine at the UDA National College Championship. The routine was almost ready but we had to add 15 seconds to the routine. When you say you added 15 seconds it doesn’t sound like a lot but when you’re doing the dance and adding more tricks and time it feels like a new routine. We worked back through the whole routine cleaning every motion and trick to make sure we were all in sync with each other while we were dance doing the correct hip hop movement. At practices we would run the routine in sections and in between each section do a workout. This would consist of squats, abs, wall sits, and arm exercises. This was very effective for us because it targeted all the muscles we were using during the routine while we were tired. Our ultimate goal was to deliver a winning performance and look like we were having fun at the same time.
TD: After nationals we focused on finishing our basketball season, but when we returned from spring break we jumped right into work mode. We practiced 3 days a week for 4 hours, incorporating daily work outs. Since most of the routine stayed the same from nationals, we really focused on cleanliness, stamina and consistency on tricks.
Doesn’t it feel pretty great to say CHAMPS? Especially since you are one?
AH: Yes, it feels more than great to say that we’re Champs, it’s AWESOME!! I can say that I am a National Champion and Two times World Champion. I chose UC to go to when I saw Cincinnati win a National Title and I always wanted to experience that feeling. Being at competition and having the announcer call your team name out as the winner is an unimaginable feeling. I will never forget it and I will never forget the team I was on this year. I won with a group of girls that I will always consider my friends and family.
TD: Yes it does, the feeling is indescribable!
A huge, huge, huge, huge, huge thanks to both Ashley Herman and Toria Douglas for their great answers. Even more huge congrats to them and the entire team on winning the gold. They aren’t just the best dance team in the nation, they are the best dance team in the world.
Congratulations #TeamUSA! Gold Medalist in Team Cheer Hip Hop! #ICUworlds pic.twitter.com/KC1j8ZhpCB
— International Cheer Union (@ICUcheer) April 25, 2014
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