June 19, 2025
SVSU dance team defends national pom title
Saginaw Valley State University’s dance team successfully defended its national title in Division II Pom Performance at the Dance Team Union College Classic National Championship. The competition was held April 12-13 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. The team earned first place in the Pom Performance category and placed second in both the Team Performance and Spirit Showdown categories.
The dance team’s theme, “With Love,” celebrated their commitment to each other, the university and the sport. “There was a lot of pressure on us dancers to defend our titles this year; it felt like everyone’s eyes in the dance team community were on us,” said Alexis McNally, a general studies major from Saginaw. “Although we did not defend our team performance title, we are proud to have defended our pom title and hope to keep moving forward to achieve even greater success in the future.”
At this year’s competition, the team competed in new categories, which included Spirit Showdown. Their routine was choreographed by head coach Jennifer McNally and team members Alexis McNally, a general studies major from Saginaw, and Ava Mendoza, a communications major from Saginaw.
“A very overlooked and not very well-known fact about our routines this year is that one of our own team members helped choreographed one of them,” Alexis McNally said. She noted that Ava Mendoza helped create SVSU’s first-ever Spirit Showdown routine. Her work helped the team earn second place at nationals in the Spirit Showdown category, competing against all participating schools, not just those in Division II.
The team credits much of their success to the guidance and encouragement of their coaches, head coach Jennifer McNally, assistant coach Sonya Campbell and corner coach Marlayna Russo.
Jennifer reflected on the team’s win at nationals. “Defending our national title in pom stands out as a true honor. In many ways, defending a title is even more challenging than winning it the first time, and as a coach, it was incredibly rewarding to see our team rise to that challenge.”
The SVSU dance team is one of several club sports on campus. It provides opportunities for students to compete and represent the university at a national level. Throughout the year, the team performs at all home football and basketball games.
The 2024-2025 SVSU dance team includes:
• Lane Adis, a mathematics education major from Brighton
• Audrey Brabant, an exercise science major from Carsonville
• Alaysia Davis, a marketing major from Bay City
• Savannah Erler, a social work major from Swartz Creek
• Cassie Freiberg, a special education major from Milford
• Erica Gilbert, an exercise science major from Swartz Creek
• London Harvey, an elementary education major from Bay City
• Kailey Hawkins, an elementary education major from Macomb
• Addisyn Knoll, an occupational therapy major from St. Clair Shores
• Victoria Koury, a marketing and economics major from Sterling Heights
• Emily Kunkel, a social work and criminal justice major from Marine City
• Hollyn Laur, a public health major from North Branch
• Olivia Leaphart, an occupational therapy major from Grand Rapids
• Isabella Maola, a professional accountancy major from St. Clair Shores
• Ava Mendoza, a communication major from Saginaw
• Olivia Mitrzyk, an environmental studies and sustainability major from Bay City
• Alexis McNally, a general studies major from Saginaw
• Addie O’Loughlin, a general business major from Bay City
• Emily Salgado, a marketing major from Saginaw
• Nicole Shafer, an accounting major from Madison Heights
• Hannah Shell, an English education major from St. Clair
• Hailey Stone, a psychology major from Eastpointe
• Delaney Weber, a cell biology, molecular biology and biomedical sciences (pre-veterinary) major from Pinconning
For more information about the SVSU dance team and club sports, visit https://www.svsu.edu/campusrecreation/clubsports/dance/.