After one week spent in Orlando, the dance team is back and ready for a recap. Learning the routines back in August and September, cleaning the routines and attending local competitions, Rosary was ready to hit the nationals floor. Leaving on Jan. 27 and returning on Feb. 3, the Royals put their best foot forward and gave it their all. In Orlando, Rosary Dance attended a three-day competition, trying to put out the best performances they could. On the last day, they went to Disney World, ate all the Disney favorites and rode exciting rides.
They kept the tradition and stayed in a house for the week. Some rooms had different themes, such as Harry Potter, Minions and Star Wars. The house also had a basketball court filled with wallpaper of Madison Square Garden and a pro basketball game. They shortly realized that they were also staying in the same home that the Texas Tech Pom Squad stayed in just a couple of weeks ago for their UDA Nationals.
Sophomore Kaitlin Lawerence experienced nationals for the second time this year and shared her favorite part, “My favorite part of part of Florida was all the time I got to spend with my team. I made so many new memories and strengthened many preexisting bonds.”
The first day, the girls had a day of rest while spray tanning and adapting to the time change and environment. The second day, the grind started with a four-hour practice, then more practice at the competition venue. That night, the girls got to celebrate their hard work and have a nice dinner banquet. On day three, the competition started as varsity took the floor for prelims. Both routines made it to the semi-finals, so both JV and varsity took the floor on Saturday. With amazing performances, both JV and varsity made it to the finals for pom. After the three-day competition, JV got second for pom and eighth for jazz; varsity got ninth for pom and fifteenth for jazz.
With six new freshmen on the team this year, they each got to experience an RADT Florida trip for the first time. Malia Habash ’29 shared her highlights of the trip: “I had a great experience for my first time at UDA nationals in Florida! My favorite parts would be getting ready for the stage, which includes practices, pep talks, car rides, hype music and more. These really helped me get into the mood of competition and even made me feel better as I took the floor. Overall, I had such a blast being there, and I can’t wait for more seasons to come!”
The dance team ended their trip with a day at Disney World, where they went to three parks. The first park they went to was Magic Kingdom, and they got to take a photo in front of the iconic Disney castle. They next went to Animal Kingdom and, as a team, rode the rides Expedition Everest and Avatar. They ended the day at Epcot, where the team got to eat dinner in the country of their choice.
Overall, the dance team got to look back at their amazing season and show off all of their hard work on the stage in Orlando. The team bonded and persevered through every challenge together. Congrats, dance team, for every accomplishment this season!
