It’s A Clean Sweep for Russell Middle School’s Dance Team
Sasha Bush
Ashland Beacon
It was a clean sweep for the members of Russell Middle School’s Dance Team as this amazingly talented and poised group of young ladies brought home not one… not two… not three… but FOUR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS at the National Dance Alliance’s (NDA) National Championship, which was held on March 3-5 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. The NDA was founded in 1976 and has since built its foundations upon spirit, tradition, and excellence. As stated on the NDA’s website, “The NDA continues to prove that The Work Is Worth It through empowering young athletes across the country. By working alongside coaches and dance teams nationwide at camps and competitions, the NDA strives to not only build strong athletes but great individuals.”
There is no better embodiment of what the NDA stands for than the dance team of Russell Middle School. This team of well-trained dancers is no stranger to bringing home the hardware and national champ black satin jackets. Just last year, the Russell Middle School Team brought home the national championship for the Junior High/Middle School Hip-Hop, Jazz, and Pom categories and came in second with their Junior High/Middle School Game Day performance. These ladies showed up to win last year and this year was no exception. The 2022/2023 Russell Middle School Dance Team brought home national championship titles in all four categories this time. That’s right! Russell Middle School Dance Team is your NDA National Champions in the Junior High/ Middle School Hip-Hop, Jazz, Pom, and Game Day categories. To say these girls kept the dance floor hot is an understatement.
These girls have worked hard all year long putting in the long days of practice and always doing so with a smile on their faces. Russell Middle School Dance took to Facebook and stated, “National Champs!!! All four categories! Jazz, Hip-Hop, Pom, and Game Day! We are all so excited and thankful. These girls have worked so hard and are so deserving!” The work ethic and dedication of these young ladies are bar none, and it clearly translates onto the mats. Congratulations Russell Middle School Dance team on your impressive clean sweep at the NDA National Championships.
Russell High School’s Dance Team also competed at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. The Dancing Lady Devils not only put on quite a show, but they did so while facing great tragedy as one of their own went down due to an unexpected injury during their Hip-Hop performance warmups. The team had to quickly make last minute changes to their routines and still pulled out an impressive 11th place finish out of a field of 26 very talented teams in the Small Varsity Hip-Hop category. According to the Facebook page of Russell High School’s Dancing Devils, the Dancing Lady Devils finished ninth in a field of 38 teams for the Small Varsity Pom category, which is a category that is always tough as all 38 teams were extremely talented. The Dancing Devils stated, “Moving on to the top 10 was a goal of ours!” The Dancing Lady Devils didn’t stop there… they placed sixth out of a field of 26 for the Small Varsity Game Day category.
