This past weekend, college dance teams traveled from all over the country to compete in the 2026 Universal Dance Association Nationals in Orlando, Florida. This competition is a crucial moment for the dancers, earning the nickname the “Super Bowl” of dance. Throughout the duration of the whole season, teams train for this moment, hoping to come out on top.
The competition is tournament-style, where the teams must make it through the preliminaries, semi-finals, and finals. There are multiple leagues within the competition with D1A as the highest, D1, and the open division. Each team performs routines of various genres including jazz, pom, hip-hop, and game-day.
Jazz is an entertaining style of dance that includes beautiful leaps, turns, rhythm, and passion. Ohio State University, a team competing in the D1A league, won the jazz title. Their routine scored a 96.73, beating Louisiana State University by just over a point. They portrayed a black-swan inspired dance, leaving the audience breathless.
“I absolutely loved their dance. I am so happy that they won,” junior Avery Cattoor said.
Pom is an upbeat genre that incorporates techniques from jazz, hip-hop, and cheerleading. This year’s D1A pom title winner was the University of Minnesota. They gave an excellent performance full of amazing talent that absolutely won over the judges.
Arguably one of the most exciting genres of dance is hip-hop. With their sharp movements and loud facial expression, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, took home the win. However, this year’s hip-hop competition sprouted some controversial opinions. Many who are a part of the dance community felt that Louisiana State University deserved to win. They danced to Kendrick Lamar’s half-time show, making it both unique and entertaining. People felt that their performance was seamless, and a half-time show of their own.
“I think that the University of Nevada, Las Vegas did really well, but it wasn’t my favorite. I wish that Louisiana State University would have won,” Junior Ava Howe said.
An amazing opportunity for the dancers to showcase their school spirit is in their game-day performance. This cheer-based genre portrays an actual routine that the team would show during a game. Along with their other title, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas won with their game-day dance. They provided exceptional talent and fully deserved the win.
This weekend was such an important time for all of those involved in college dance. The competition highlights all of the incredible talent of dancers across the country. All teams did an amazing job and gave their all on the floor.
