The Rocky Mountain Diamond Dancers took the nationals floor on March 17^th and 18^th in Anaheim, California. They took first place in Large Championship Military, sixth open small lyrical, sixth open kick, and eighth open medium hip hop. They also won the military sweepstakes award which means they got the highest scoring military dance over all the military routines. When asking some experienced team members some questions about the trip, they all had a common denominator, they were all proud and felt that they deserved this award.

When Haylee Bird was proposed with the question, “were there any special moments during the weekend that stood out to you?” She responded with, “One special moment was when we won. It felt so amazing for all our hard work to pay off. Disneyland was also a special moment because we could just enjoy our time as a team and have fun with each other.”

She was also asked to explain the practices and how they went leading up to leaving for nationals. With all the stress you can anticipate tension. Haylee stated, “The practices leading up to the weekend were hard, but worth it. We had to put a lot of effort in and work hard so we could be on our A game!”

When asking sophomore Tessa Dunlop what the best part of nationals was, she responded, “The best part of nationals was the feeling after getting that win, and also getting our championship backpacks.”

Tessa added, “Nationals felt like more pressure than a regular season competition, especially once we made finals because we all just wanted to win so bad.”

The Diamonds competed in the semi-finals for all their dances. Their military dance landed them a spot in the finals which is where they recompeted this dance for a chance to win a title.

Junior Hannah Yudman stated, “The best memory I made was competing and walking odd the national’s floor after we re-competed our military in finals. I was so proud of my team. You could feel the power and determination for wanting a national title.”

She was asked the question what emotions you felt when walking off the national’s floor, and she responded, “After walking off the national’s floor, I felt relieved that the routine was done. It was sad that we would never complete the routines again. I always still have a rush of adrenaline in me after I compete. I also felt proud of my team for pushing and leaving everything we had on the national’s floor.”

This was Katie Ross’ last high school dance competition. She was asked, “what was the feeling you had when you heard your team got first and when your team went into finals how did you prepare for it?”

She stated, “I was proud of the team, it reflected all our hard work over the season. I was so excited that we were able to achieve first place and that we improved from state.”

“We stayed focused and strong. We reviewed the dances, so we went on with confidence and we just took a deep breath and told each other we had it and to give it all we got” Katie added.

Overall, the Diamonds achieved a recognizable placement, and it was a rewarding experience for all. Returning and not returning members all felt this way. Nationals helped to build bonds and bring the team together as they won a national title!