The Chiefettes competed at the Universal Dance Association National Dance Team Championship held in Orlando, Florida, at Walt Disney World. They left Thursday, January 31, and returned Monday, February 4, with two more national rankings under their belts.
The competition began early Saturday morning, February 1, at the Indiana Jones Theater at MGM Studios where the Chiefettes performed both their Pom and Jazz routines.
The Chiefettes advanced to Pom semi-finals but did not advance to Pom finals. In their first year competing in the Jazz category, the Chiefettes advanced to Jazz semi-finals. Unfortunately, the Chiefettes were ranked 17 going into finals, and only the top 16 teams were taken, so they did not advance forward to the finals.
Overall, the 
hiefettes ranked 31 out of 77 for small varsity Pom and 20 out of 64 for small varsity Jazz. Previously at the 2012 National Dance Team Championship, the Chiefettes ranked 11 in High Kick and 18 in Pom.
The team believes their recent success at Nationals is partly because the team works so well together and is close. Junior Kristen Plunkett said, “Everyone on the team has a passion for dance, and that passion connects the dancers as a team on a different level.”
Along with competing well and earning National titles, the national competition provided bonding and learning experiences. New to Chiefettes, freshman Christine Lane said, “My favorite part of the team is the positive experience gained through the bonding and growing as sisters and as a team throughout the season.”
Sophomore Darby Smith said, “The best part of Nationals was seeing other teams and seeing how we could be different and improve.”
Their year-round season is not over yet, though. Eight months after beginning preparation in the summer, hundreds of hours of practice since June, countless performances and multiple competitions later, their season culminates into the state championship. They will be competing at the Universal Dance Association Georgia Dance Championship, held here at McIntosh on February 16. The event will begin at 9:30 a.m. with solos and small group dances, but the team competition will commence at 1:30.
Junior Monica Schwingshakl said, “I am looking forward to state so we can end our season with a bang.” She adds, “I am proud of my team for leaving it all on the floor at Nationals with a killer jazz performance.”
