By UNI Athletics
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — The University of Northern Iowa Dance Team showed its prowess as a top-ten ranked Division I team in January, competing at the United Dance Association (UDA) College National Championships in Orlando, Florida last month.
Competing against nearly 20 other Division I programs at the ESPN Worldwide of Sports Complex, the Panthers performed three separate routines during their time in Florida in game day, pom and jazz. UNI posted a sixth-place finish in the game day routine with a finals score of 84.4333, improving on its semifinal score of 83.3. The Panthers also placed tenth in the poms routine (87.3492) with a semifinal score of 87.9365, and also finished 14th in the semifinal round of the jazz routine (85.8889).
Each team participating in the UDA College National Championships is allotted one official 20 minute practice on the competition floor for each routine they compete in for the entire week, with additional practice time outside the competition venue.
“Dance is such a subjective and competitive sport,” explained UNI senior dance captain Kylie Ryder. “I know we are really proud of the dances we put on the floor this year, so I feel really good with our placements.”
Fans can continue to support the UNI Dance Team throughout the remainder of the UNI men’s and women’s basketball regular seasons, as well as the 2025 MVC Men’s Basketball Tournament (commonly known as Arch Madness) at Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri and the 2025 Credit Union 1 MVC Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana.