During their prime season, the Woodland Dance Team attends many local competitions throughout Connecticut, and places within the top three in many of them. This year, the dance team has had an extremely exciting opportunity; competing at a national level in Orlando, Florida. This is the first time in program history that they are traveling outside of the state. The competition took place from February 2, 2024 to February 5, 2024, and was held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex in the Walt Disney World parks. In total there were over forty-five teams from all over the nation competing to take home a trophy, medals, and bragging rights. Woodland was by far the smallest team there with only fourteen girls. Even though they were small, they did not let the other teams intimidate them. Another thing that was different for the girls was the material that they performed on. Usually, the team performs on polished hardwood that is usually a staple on gym floors. The material that is used at the ESPN complex is called marley. Marley is a type of vinyl flooring that most studios have, and is better to dance on than hardwood or tile. They performed with talent, spunkiness, and swagginess on the Marley, making it their best showcase yet.
After the team returned from Nationals on Monday, February 5th, they had another mission to complete: NVL’s. The girls gave it their all in the small time frame they had to become prepared, as the competition took place on Thursday, February 8th. Once again, the team performed to the highest of their capabilities, but this time, the work paid off. Rebounding from a 2nd place loss the previous year, the team was victorious and successful in regaining their winning title. This NVL win is the fourth one that they will mark down, paving the way for more wins in the future.
The Woodland Dance Team had recently competed in their States Campionship, hosted by the Connecticut Insterscholastic Athetic Conference (CIAC). The girls once again gave their last performance their all, and the ending results were worth the hard work and effort. The team placed second in their small hip hop division, and placed third in ther small jazz division.
As everything is said and done, the girls worked their hardest, and to their fullest potential this season. The fruits of their labour beard well, and the team is excited to begin anew.
