Congratulations to the University of Minnesota Competitive Ballroom Team

The Team

Colie Anderson

Missy Baddin

Danny Bakke

Immersing myself in ballroom for a weekend always rekindles my drive to become the best dancer I can. Plus, it's impossible not to have fun!

Calvin Behling

Sam Blass

Collegiate Nationals was a terrific experience. I danced in the newcomer division with Rachel Marusinec and placed sixth in American waltz out of seventy-three couples. I also made it to the quarterfinals in bronze American foxtrot with Savanna Moen. I will definitely continue dancing after I graduate!

Daniel Boman

Tyler Bridges

Marissa Clark

John Frame

I would like to thank Nicole Nissen-Hooper and Lizzie Weaver for being my dance partners for the 2013 fall semester. I had a wonderful time competing in the National Collegiate DanceSport Championship and look forward to future competitions.

Frank Ha

When I came to the States last August, I experienced culture shock; my peers talk about the things that I know not of: football, games, sitcoms. I felt somewhat like an outcast. But with ballroom dancing, which I'd done for a while before coming to the States, there was something that I did know. It was the tool for me to connect, to communicate, to engage in a super awesome community.

Michelle Hale

Jake Karr

Michael Kasinkas

Sierra Kimbrough

Jiarui "Iris" Li

I'm very proud of being a part of the competitive ballroom team. The days I spent with my teammates in Ohio have become my most precious memory from university, especially when my partner and I made the finals in bronze swing. I love dancing.

Karen Maldonado

Rachel Marusinec

This was my first year going to the National Collegiate DanceSport Championship, and I had a wonderful time. I had a lot of fun dancing and competing, and I also enjoyed watching and learning from the more experienced members of the team. Making it to finals and placing sixth out of seventy-three couples in newcomer smooth waltz was definitely a highlight.

Meredith McKinney

Natalie McMann

Connor McPhillips

Savanna Moen

Nicole Nissen-Hooper

Collegiate Nationals was amazing! I was so impressed by everyone's moves and school spirit. Making it to semifinals in smooth foxtrot was incredible, but just being in Ohio with the team made the trip perfect.

Naomi Ochoa

Daniel O’Connell

Congratulations to my fellow teammates on their success!

Rosemary O’Connell

As usual, Collegiate Nationals was a long and fun-filled weekend. For me, the highlights were taking fourth place in both my silver smooth events with Joel Torgeson and competing in novice rhythm with Dan O'Connell.

Jack O'Leary

Tijen Petersen

Luke Rosedahl

I had another fantastic semester of ballroom dancing. Even with a foot injury right before Collegiate Nationals, my partnerships danced really well and got callbacks in almost everything! Overall, dancing continued to be a wonderful experience and provided lots of great memories and new friends.

Ryan Roznowski

Libby Ryan

Sarah Snapp

Thomas Stastny

My first time competing at the National Collegiate DanceSport Championship was definitely a worthwhile experience. I made callbacks for smooth foxtrot and rhythm cha cha and rumba.
I enjoyed dancing with both of my partners, and I look forward to future competitions.

Stephanie Swam

Joel Torgeson

I couldn’t be more pleased with the results! The team as a whole outperformed previous years, earning an enormous amount of callbacks. From newcomer to gold, the U of M competitors did themselves proud.

Michael Veres

Taylor Wall

I am excited to report that our trip to the National Collegiate DanceSport Championship was a rousing success! In my events, we averaged in the top 45% of our standard heats and made it to semifinals in smooth and rhythm. Although we hoped to make it to the finals, this is our first year competing gold syllabus, so I am still quite pleased with our results. Furthermore, as the president of the club, I am astounded by the impressive amount that our team has been able to accomplish in just one semester. Our new dancers were well prepared for such a large event as this, and all of our dancers competed very professionally. As this is my last year as a collegiate dancer, I look forward to hearing about all of the club's success in years to come.

Lizzie Weaver

Seth Westlake

We had almost three months to prepare for Ohio, and when we finally got to compete, we were far from disappointed. The U of M competition team made a great showing in Columbus, breaking through many of the preliminary rounds and placing among the top eight couples in several categories. It was very exciting for me to have placed fifth in American foxtrot, especially with over sixty couples in the newcomer division with similar levels of skill and experience. I hope to make Ohio an annual stop as I learn to dance at a higher level in the coming years.

Lee Wintervold

I had a fantastic time attending the National Collegiate DanceSport Championship in Ohio this year. I danced bronze smooth and standard, placing in the top three in all styles, with a first place finish in American foxtrot. The weekend was a blast, and I can't wait to attend next year with my partners.