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Duke's Dancing Devils Place 4th in Nation
4/12/2000 1:00:00 AM | Athletics
The Duke Dancing Devils earned a 4th place finish in the 2000 NCA College Cheer and Dance National Championship held in Daytona Beach on April 6 and 7.
The 17 member squad entered the competition seeded 7th in Division 1A, but quickly placed 4th in the preliminaries held on Thursday, April 6.
The top ten teams advanced to the finals held at the historic Band Shell on Daytona Beach on Friday, April 7. The Dancing Devils garnered their best ever 4th place finish, the only college team in the top five without a dance major, dance scholarships, varsity status or corporate sponsorship.
The road to the "Final Four" is lengthy. The Dancing Devils initially qualified for entry in the 2000 competition at the 1999 NCA Collegiate Summer Camp held in August. A videotape displaying the team's skills must then be submitted in the fall. Teams are then ranked in their respective divisions based on NCAA football classification and extended an invitation to compete.
The Duke team grabbed the attention of the Cheer and Dance world last year with a best ever 5th place finish in the 1999 competition.
Each team must perform a rigorous routine displaying their best performance ability. A variety of dance skills must be employed with special emphasis on Jazz, Pom, Funk and Kick. The routine must adhere to NCA Safety Guidelines and deductions are taken for any violations or miscues in the routine.
Criteria for judging include technical execution, formation changes, uniformity, visual effect, timing and team stamina.
The 17 females on the Dancing Devils undergo year round rigorous athletic conditioning to be able to perform the innovative choreography used in their routines. The theme for the Duke 2000 routine was "Let's Get Realistic, Dance Is Not A Sport," spoofing the gravity defying feats and the level of athleticism necessary to execute the moves they perform during their routine.
Seldom given credit as athletes, the Duke Dancing Devils will take center stage on the CBS Sports Spectacular on Saturday, April 15 at 2pm. The competition will be broadcast internationally.
Members of the Duke Dancing Devils 2000 are: Seniors: Leah Moore, Priscilla Tu; Juniors: Holly Humphrey, Catherine Pesce, Lia Giovanni and Katie Richardson, Sophomores: Tracey Lesetar, Yuko Hansbrough, Caryn Lee and Allison Rushmore; Freshmen: Jennifer Kaszton, Kimberly Love, Kimberly Hammersmith, Allison Murphree, Alexys Krieg, Tara Kraft and Nadiya Jones.
Assisting Dancing Devils are Senior Melanie Rubinsohn and Sophomore Darah Smith. The Dancing Devils are coached by Lori Hayden and assisted by Angie McDuffie. Also in Florida supporting Duke were former Dancing Devils Courtney Pierce ('99) and Vikki Villicek ('98).
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