The UCF Knights dance team placed third in the nation in the Division IA hip-hop category during the Universal Dance Association College Nationals on Sunday, making program history.
At the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, the team competed in both Division IA jazz and hip-hop against over 30 other collegiate teams. Although the team only made it to the semifinals round for the jazz division, they passed all three rounds in the hip-hop division and won the first medal in UCF dance program history, according to UCF Athletics.
The team, including sophomore psychology major Emma Taggart, said they were filled with joy after receiving the win.
“I cried because I was so happy,” said Taggart. “I was just in shock and so happy for my team, showing that our hard work actually paid off.”
One of the dancers, sophomore exercise nursing major Gabriella Joyce, said from summer 2024 till January 2025, the team trained for not only school performances but for these competition routines. She said the team practiced for eight hours, five times a week in preparation for this competition.
“The majority of our nationals practices happen throughout winter break,” said Joyce. “So throughout those weeks, we typically practice Monday through Friday twice a day,” said Joyce.
Joyce is one of the 25 girls on the team. The all-girls team first placed top five in Division IA hip-hop in 2024, which was the first time in UCF Dance history.
“For my team, overall, this year is different because by reaching top five, it has motivated us even more to reach higher goals, and move up placements,” said Joyce.
In the semifinals round, UCF placed fourth overall in front of Louisiana State University, which had won four national titles in previous years. This was already a momentous moment for the Knights, beating their record for semifinals. The team had a score of 96.30 and raw score of 91.71.
Fans from around the country came to watch and support the team. Megia Pogulis, freshman at the University of Alabama, said she drove nine hours to see the team shine on the finals floor. Pogulis is an Orlando native and has friends on the team who she wanted to come and cheer on.
“They really broke out of their shell this year,” said Pogulis. “They got top five last year and I think this year they are going to do even better.”
The team went up a placement after the final round. They had an event score of 95.02 and a raw score of 100.03. The team was 0.3503 from second place.
According to Varsity Spirit, UCF bumped University of Memphis, a three-time national title winner, down to fourth place.
Taggart described the process for this competition as difficult because the team had three dancers injured.
“We lost our best dancers, so it was hard to rebuild our whole formations and everything,” said Taggart. In only a few weeks, the team had to change and fix spots in their dances.
After the injuries and long hours of practice and dedication, the team was still able to reach new heights for the program.
“I know it sounds cliché, but there is a lot of blood, sweat and tears that we put into these hours,” said Taggart. “ I think we finally proved ourselves after this win.”
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