Nothing But the Best; Tennessee Dance Team Feature

By Drew Rutherford, UT Media Relations
UTsports.com

Two minutes. That is all the time given to the 18 women on the Tennessee dance team to perform a routine that has taken them weeks to master. But that is all the time they need.

These Vols have owned the jazz category of the College Dance Team National Championships, winning a remarkable three consecutive titles.

"The eight seniors on our team haven't known anything other than championships since they have been at Tennessee," UT Spirit Coordinator Joy Postell-Gee said. "They are going for their fourth title in four years this year."

Being the best dance team in America draws a lot of attention and offers many unique opportunities. The UT dancers performed alongside Hank Williams, Jr., in the Monday Night Football intro on ESPN.

They also showed their skills in the Eric Berry for Heisman music video starring Berry as well as Tennessee basketball player and hip-hop artist Renaldo Woolridge.

While the dancers always look sharp--whether on the big screen or entertaining Vols fans at a UT sporting event--there is a lot of work put in leading up to those performances.

"We may practice one eight-count portion of our routine for two hours," head dance coach Kelley Eidenmuller said. "Over Christmas break when all the other students go home, we stay here and practice eight or nine hours a day to prepare for nationals."

Eidenmuller joined the UT dance team as a team member in 2000 and served as the captain her senior year. After earning her diploma from Tennessee in 2005, she stayed on The Hill to serve as the head coach. In her first three seasons, Eidenmuller has had the Midas touch. Her first three campaigns have ended with her Tennessee dance team standing above the rest as the national champion.

"She is three for three--Pat Summitt better watch out!" Postell-Gee said.

For the women who have put in the hours in the dance studio, the experience leaves a lasting memory of their time on Rocky Top.

"Being a part of this team and a part of UT Athletics has been like nothing I have ever experienced before," senior Emmy Bibliowicz of Winter Park, Fla., said. "Even students that sit in the front row of the student section don't get the view that we get on the sidelines. There is nothing like it."

Like many children in Big Orange country, Knoxville, Tenn., native Alyssa Surrett spent her childhood in the bleachers of Neyland Stadium, Thompson-Boling Arena and other great UT athletics venues. For her, being part of the dance team has been a dream come true.

"I grew up here and have been coming to games all my life," Surrett said. "When I was a little girl I used to watch the dance team and think that someday I would be out there, too."

No matter the circumstances, the three-time reigning national champs are guaranteed to be together. Even after spending countless hours together in the dance studio, the women of the UT dance team never tire of each other.

"The girls on the team have been my best friends throughout my college career," senior Joanna Salmon, Peoria, Ill., said. "You never see just one of us walking around campus; there are always four or five of us. We really are a very close group."

The Tennessee dance team practiced more than 150 hours in preparation for the 2010 College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships. On Jan. 17, they will represent the Big Orange Nation at the competition and try to fend off rival Minnesota to win their fourth-consecutive crown.

Tennessee Claims Third Straight National Title

Story and photos by Donnell Field
UTSports.com
Tri Cities Sports.com

ORLANDO, Fla. - After winning two national titles there is a thought that maybe one would be complacent or that time would catch up with them. Tennessee's dance team left no doubt and put to rest any thought of complacency in the semi-finals on Saturday night and then proceeded to nail its third straight national crown, in the Jazz Division, in resounding fashion on Sunday night at Walt Disney World's Wide World of Sports.

It was a just one of a few highlights that again solidified Tennessee as one of the top spirit programs in the country.

Coming into the competition Tennessee's cheer squad had to fight its way through the semi-finals to reach the championship night. Having 13 first time competitors and only two returnees, just making the finals was not a given thought. But with great passion and tenacity the young squad performed near flawlessly in the semis to gain a spot in the finals on Sunday.

The finals proved a little tougher as the competition also improved. They took the floor mid-way through the finals and despite a few small bobbles nailed down another top 10 finish, placing eighth among 15 finalist including several national programs who came in ranked above them.

Rounding out the group was good ole Smokey coming off a national championship year in 2008, gave a solid performance but not enough to retain the crown. Smokey finished fifth, marking the 10th straight year Tennessee has placed all three of its competition squads in the top 10.

The dance team also brought home a sixth-place finish in the Hip-Hop Division bringing four top 10 finishes for the Tennessee spirit squads.

But the night belonged to the reigning two-time national champions as they swept through the semi-finals and prepared for the real thing on Sunday. With only one senior, Tennessee's team took the floor mid-way through competition and with a lively crowd cheering them on nailed their routine and left others jockeying for second. Two-time national champion Minnesota and this year's runner up Florida State made for some formidable competition, but it was the smoothness and flawless routine and beautiful choreography which sealed the deal, earning Tennessee its' third straight crown.

It was a fitting ending to another great competition as the gap between the top teams in the country continues to close. They say winning a crown is tougher than defending one, you might have to ask our national champions about that but it is a challenge they are looking forward to 2010.