Going into each new season, the Cal State Fullerton dance team selects a team motto for the year ahead, a word or phrase designed to define, motivate and unify the Titans through months of rigorous practices and training to prepare for a single goal — a national championship.
This year’s motto: consistency
“That’s just what we wanted to be all season long,” Titan Dance Coach Jennie Volkert said.
The Titans were indeed consistent, and at the highest level.
The CSUF Dance Team won its 18th National Championship in the Division 1 Jazz competition at the Universal Dance Team Championships, held Jan. 12-14 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Fla.
CSUF also placed 3rd in the nation for its routine in the Division 1 Pom category.
“We were just so excited,” said Volkert, who has served as head coach since 1997 and has been the coach for all 18 national championship teams. “The competition is really tough, and all the teams are good. And everybody kind of has their own style, and dance is very subjective, so you never know what the judges are going to want. We just stayed focused.”
The competition was tougher in this year’s championship, with the UDA adding a preliminary round for the D1 Jazz category.
More than 30 teams competed in the first round, 20 teams advanced to the semifinal round, and then 10 teams advanced to the final round, which was won by the Titans.
“It was scary going into it knowing we were going to do it three times,” senior co-captain Carissa Hobbs said. “Normally we do it twice. But honestly, going through it three times, when we got to finals, I know we were way more confident stepping on that stage, and we knew what we needed to do because we had already done it two times.”
The road to the championships begins in April when tryouts are held.
This year’s group of potential dancers was the largest and most talented ever, said Volkert, who was herself a Titan cheerleader, performing on the sidelines for CSUF’s last football team in 1992.
Even members of the previous year’s team are required to try out again to make the team.
Once the final cuts are made — never an easy decision — Volkert said, the 21 Titans who make the team attend a few camps over the summer.
The day after Labor Day, practices for the season get underway and are held three days a week.
After Christmas, practices are every day in preparation for the national championships.
Having been part of a national championship team as a sophomore, winning is always special, Hobbs said, but her motivation to be part of the team each year hasn’t only been to win another title.
“We just love each other, and it’s like a family here,” Hobbs said. “So that’s why we keep coming back. Not necessarily because of the winning, but because of the people on the team, our coaches, the environment.”
Balancing practices, academics and a job took some getting used to, freshman dance team member Kennedi Sandidge said.
To be part of a winning team, Sandidge was willing to make the commitment, and support from her teammates and the coaches made the adjustment period easier, she said.
“It was definitely something I haven’t experienced before,” Sandidge said. “I knew that when I wanted to go to college, I wanted to be on a really strong team that had a good reputation and seemed to just be well-rounded. I had looked at old videos of Cal State Fullerton, and they had everything I was looking for. I knew a few girls going into it that are also freshmen, and so it already made it feel like home.”
Senior co-captain Jordan Takai, who was also part of the Titans’ national championship team as a sophomore, said winning a second national title is a great way to cap off her senior year, especially coming off a disappointing team showing during her junior season.
“Because when you feel so defeated last year, and just to come back as a new team, it felt really good,” Takai said.
Titans’ assistant coach Krysten Dorado was also a member of the dance team, from 2010 to 2013, and part of three national championship teams before being asked to come back as a coach.
“It was an incredible opportunity, and especially being a part of the program before, I definitely couldn’t pass it up,” Dorado said. “Jennie has done an amazing job with the dance team, and so to be a part of this is awesome.”
Aside from competing and performing at basketball games, the Titans are also active in the community, reading to children in local elementary schools and participating in toy drives during the holiday season.
Upcoming performances
Thursday, Feb. 29 – Women’s Basketball vs. Long Beach State at 7 p.m.
- Halftime – 3rd Place Pom Routine
Saturday, March 2 – Men’s Basketball vs. UC Santa Barbara at 6 p.m.
- Halftime – National Championship Jazz Routine and Trophy Presentation
