Pine-Richland dancers qualify for national competition

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Monday, July 29, 2024 1:31 p.m. | Monday, July 29, 2024 1:31 p.m.

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Courtesy of Pine-Richland School District

Members of the Pine-Richland High School Dance Team are pictured: (front, from left) Arianna LeDuc, Victoria Roccia, Maura Sciullo, Sophia Reighard, Courtney Gochis, Savannah Lofink; (middle) Alaina Cafardi, Alyssa Mancine, Camilla Rand, Sophie Whiting, Samantha Molinaro; (back) Marin Miller, Ava Lundgren, Julia Mehalik, Jaidyn Thomas.

Pine-Richland High School’s Dance Team won several awards and qualified for the Universal Dance Association’s National Dance Competition in early 2025 following their performances at the Varsity Spirit UDA Camp at Slippery Rock University in July.

Led by senior captains Sophia Reighard and Maura Sciullo, the team of 15 attended the overnight camp with dancers from across the state and from Ohio, New York and West Virginia. The girls worked with four certified UDA instructors on innovative choreography, technique and team building.

The team earned overall first place in the competition, along with the highest honors of Blue Ribbon, Superior Rating and Superior Trophy, which qualified the team for UDA Nationals from Jan. 31 through Feb. 2, 2025, in Orlando, Fla.

Seniors Reighard, Sciullo, Courtney Gochis, Arianna LeDuc, Savannah Lofink and Victoria Roccia received the Varsity Spirit All-American UDA Award and are invited to participate in several UDA events this year, including New Year’s Day parades in London and Rome.

All team members earned blue ribbons, the highest honor, for new jazz, pom and hip hop routines learned at camp. The team earned the 2024 Drill Down Superior UDA Award for receiving the most blue ribbons for Military Drill Downs each day.

All dancers in attendance participated in a final drill competition on the last day of camp to test memory, effort, precision and performance. Junior Sophie Whiting placed first against all other schools and dancers, and junior Camilla Rand placed second.

Other awards included the Super Spirit Stick, presented to Pine-Richland from the Canon Mac Dance Team, and daily spirit sticks from instructors for work ethic, character and leadership; Pin-It-Forward Awards to ninth grader Julia Mehalik and seniors Roccia and Sciullo for demonstrating leadership and full effort; and special recognition ribbons to sophomore Marin Miller, ninth grader Jaidyn Thomas and junior Sophie Whiting for effort, positive attitude and leadership.