WORCESTER—Worcester State University dance team members believe confidence, high energy, and a “can do” attitude sparked their seventh-place ranking at the Universal Dance Association’s national championship last month.
Held in Orlando, Florida, the 14-member squad competed among Division II and Division III teams in the Open Hip Hop category, earning a spot in the finals for the first time in the WSU club’s history.
Last year, the team came close, making it to the semi-finals. For Head Coach Alexis “Lexy” Nevalsky, a repeat of 2023’s disappointment was not an option.
“I kept telling the girls that finals should be their number one goal,” said Nevalsky, who returned in 2020 as a recent WSU graduate and dance team alumna. “They really stepped it up.”
Sophomore Abigail Saner said the difference this year was that the team walked onto the ESPN Wide World of Sports stage with more energy and assurance about their abilities.
“We felt so confident,” Saner said. “All year, we had this `we can do it’ attitude and took that with us.”
Unity as a group also had an impact on their performance, according to senior Chloe McGrievey.
“Our bonds of friendship helped us,” she said. “We came together and got a lot closer this year.”
Team members spend a lot of time together. They practice from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. three times per week beginning in August. In the run-up to nationals, the group held two practices per day, each four hours long.
Senior Kristen Lally said she likes to re-watch previous national competitions, particularly Division I groups because it helps to witness their progression from the start of the season to the finals.
“Knowing they don’t hit everything at first pushes us and makes us think we can achieve our goal too and share our passion for dance,” Lally said.
The dancers performed to a mash-up of Missy Elliott songs, which Nevalsky said had a ’90s style and vibe.
“The music brought a fun element to the whole experience,” she noted.
In addition to Hip Hop, a 16-member group competed in Jazz. The club has a roster of 23 dancers, with some overlapping between styles.
Nevalsky explained that tryouts are held each spring and there is little downtime during the school year—with the team performing at all home football games and selected women’s and men’s basketball games.
Next up is a smaller, regional competition that Nevalsky said is a good venue to showcase the dancers again.
The seniors said they would miss the camaraderie they share inside and outside of dance. As team captains, they serve on an executive board, plan fundraising events, work on budgeting and act as mentors for younger team members.
Lally said it was reassuring to come to campus for the first time knowing a set of people when otherwise it could be daunting.
And, the students count their coach as a friend and supporter, pointing out that she is close in age and danced on the WSU team for two years.
Saner, like her teammates and coach, started dancing and competing at a very young age and was accustomed to a “strict studio” atmosphere.
“Here, I feel I can open up more,” Saner added. “Lexy is an excellent coach but also just a good person who wants us to keep going and pushes us.”
Nevalsky applied for the position so soon after her graduation to “keep the legacy of the team alive.”
“I had the same goals and intentions as they do now,” she said. “It’s a way to keep dancing in my life. It is one of my favorite things to do.”
Started in 2010 as a school club, the coach and students hope the dance team can one day be classified as an official sport, given their comparable hours of practice and the athleticism involved.
But for now, the team members will continue to bask in their accomplishments.
Of the moment they heard the ranking announced, McGrievey said: “There was a lot of screaming and crying…It was surreal.”
Nevalsky added the team was given a temporary trophy at the event and are awaiting the arrival of a “massive finals” replacement.
“This was an amazing season,” the coach said. “All that hard work paid off and was worth it.”
Susan Gonsalves is currently editor-in-chief of a mental health trade journal and a freelance writer/editor specializing in education, medical/health and business. She previously worked at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and has contributed to publications at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and College of the Holy Cross. At the Worcester Telegram, she covered the town of Leicester and wrote for Business Matters. She can be reached at smgedit@comcast.net
