UMD Dance Team Takes Silver at 2026 Universal Dance Association Nationals

UMD Dance Team in Orlando. Photo courtesy of Sophia Hohenstein

UMD’s Dance Team attended the Universal Dance Association (UDA) National Championship in Orlando, FL on Jan 16-18. The team brought home silver medals in both the Open Jazz and Open Pom categories, making it their second year doing so. 

The Jazz routine was performed to “In This Shirt” by The Irrepressibles, losing to Minnesota State University, Mankato, who also took gold in the Pom category. 

UDA is an annual 3-day-long competition hosted at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando. Dancers across the United States refer to UDA Nationals as the “dance superbowl” with videos and streams of dance routines posted across social media sites. 

UMD dancer Sophia Hohenstein’s favorite routine to watch was St. Thomas’ jazz, which they performed to the artist Creep. The team was in Florida for five days, allowing dancers time to attend Disney Hollywood Studios on the off days.

Hohenstein, now a junior at UMD, has been dancing since high school. This was her first time attending UDA Nationals, and said the feeling was cathartic, “everyone here genuinely loves to dance.” 

UMD dancers learned the Jazz routine in August and Pom routine in September. Dance rehearsals consisted of four 2 hour practices a week, with more intensive training closer to nationals, which would then consist of 4-5 hours of rehearsal. 

UMD's Dance Team captains Amber Arcand, Lydia Haseman, Payton Hardesty and Jada Bentson were all present at UDA nationals. Three coaches also attended UDA, making a team of roughly 31 dancers. 

“My favorite part was buying pins with my roomie,” Hohenstein said. “We had mystery pins to trade and I got to see Mickey’s Runway Railroad, too.”