National champs: 'Everything came together' for SE Sundancers

The Southeast Missouri State University Sundancers now know winning a first-time national title in anything -- not just sports -- is quite an accomplishment.

The university's competitive 13-member dance team recently came back from the Dance Team Union (DTU) College National Championship in Las Vegas -- having outperformed the University of Toledo -- with its first Division I championship win and a score of 94.54.

Grades were based on characteristics such as formation and difficulty of the routine.

Although the dancers can be seen on the sidelines during Southeast game days and halftime performances, their main focus is entertainment, Sundancers coach Tatianna Parham said.

And the annual competition in Las Vegas is the one time the squad gets to do something "just for us," she said.

The Southeast Missouri State University Sundancers celebrate after winning the program's first national title April 13 at the DTU College National Classic in Las Vegas.Submitted by Tatianna Parham

It's a time the dancers can focus on technique and skills and go back to the basics of dancing, Parham said.

The squad has been practicing since December for the competition.

"And my girls are studio trained, most of them, so they have extensive dance backgrounds," she said. "Being able to compete, we really get to go back to that fundamental style, whereas game day is more spiriting and rallying."

She said the squad loves being part of the atmosphere of Southeast athletics, but the competition allows them to focus on dancing.

And Parham said she's still trying to wrap her head around the victory.

The team's best finish before this year was third place, but being able to win the national title is something Parham said she has dreamed about since she was a child.

"To be able to stand on that stage with our banner and our trophy was like no other experience I could ever even imagine," she said. "Everything came together, and it just clicked. My girls just got it."

The Sundancers also won the opportunity to recruit upcoming dancers in February, with an all-expense paid trip to Orlando, Florida.

Each team advancing to finals competes in a competition-wide "battle," she said.

Southeast Sundancer and junior McKenzie Korhorn said she could feel the energy onstage with everyone during the performance.

"We didn't know we were technically going to win," she said, "but we definitely had a good feeling about how we performed. We perform for ourselves, not just for a title."

Korhorn said what she thought made the squad stand out from the rest of the competition was costumes and "attack toward the dance."

Senior Lindsey Greif also said the win hasn't yet registered.

"What was so weird about this year is we usually really struggle," she said. "We actually did not have that at all this year. It was something that connected and worked for us."

The only required change before the competition, Greif added, was a costume change, which helped them stand out from the rest.

And because the competition's theme was "Beast Mode Monsters," the squad would even growl, she said.

"They don't call it a grand championship, but it really felt like it to us," Parham said.

jhartwig@semissourian.com

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