DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Davenport University Dance Team is returning to Michigan with some new hardware. The team, made up of 13 student-athletes, secured their fifth title and defended their back-to-back-to-back 2021 and 2022 Championships in the team performance division. The team began this season with extreme success at camp being named Best All-Around team, Most Collegiate, and earning a gold bid to the 2023 NDA (National Dance Alliance) National Championship. As the season progressed, Head Coach Courtney Houldsworth knew they had something special. "This exceptional group of young women melded seamlessly from the beginning. I admire their dedication to one another, their humility as talented student-athletes, and the love and respect they show for this program and our incredible University. Our team's culture has been instrumental in our success this season."
Their Team Routine, choreographed by Brandi Tucker, had a score of 87.73 walking into finals. At finals, after a few reworks and polishing the routine further, the team was able to increase their score to 89.35. This score beat out second place team, West Virginia Wesleyan College (88.7), third place team Tarleton State University (88.15) and fourth place finisher Assumption University (86.6). This crowned the Davenport University Dance Team as three-time National Champions in Team Performance Division II.
At this year's showing, the team also competed in Division II Jazz against a pool of 10 other extremely talented teams and earned a spot in finals with a score of 89.71 out of prelims. This piece, choreographed by Shannon Sandvik, scored a 90.2 after the finals round. The team ended up in seventh place behind fourth-place finisher Valdosta State University (91.4), third place team Northwest Missouri State University (93.2), second place team Merrimack College (94.37) and the Lindenwood Lionettes who took home first place in Division II Jazz with a 94.4. "The caliber of talent our competitors possess is superb. It is an honor to compete against these gifted athletes and be ranked amongst such accomplished programs. We are thrilled to share the stage with them in Division II," Houldsworth stated.
"We are humbled to be surrounded by this talented group of young women. I'm also incredibly thankful to have the guidance of former head coach Kylene Geyer and support of first-year assistant coaches Madison Letwinski and Morgan Bernstein. This would not have been possible without their commitment, passion, expertise, and genuine love for this program," stated Houldsworth. Assistant coaches Bernstein and Letwinski shared, "We are so grateful to have been a part of this season. The team finished on such a strong note which makes us eager heading into next season."
The team closes their season with this competition and would like to pay special thanks to all of the friends and family who have supported them throughout the season. The coaches would also like to thank senior captains Paige and Grace for their leadership, passion and selflessness throughout their tenure on the team. Lastly, we know this would not be possible without the support from our University, Athletic Department, and Athletic Training Staff. Thank you for providing these female student-athletes with the platform to compete.
The team is eager to get back to campus and finish out their semester in the coming weeks. The 2023-2024 roster is still being built and will be announced in the late spring. For further information in regards to private auditions, tours or scholarships, please contact Head Coach Houldsworth at Courtney.houldsworth@davenport.edu.
