The Gold Squad of the Iowa State Dance Team will be competing in the National Dance Alliance Collegiate Championship in Daytona, Fla. April 9-13 with high hopes of going all the way this year.

After placing third in last year’s competition, returning members and current squad captains Kizzie Ryerson and Courtney McCulloh are optimistic about another great year for the team and the program.

“Everything leads up to this,” Ryerson, senior in elementary education, said. “You get down there and it’s one of the most intense environments you can ever experience.”

The squad will leave at 4 a.m. April 8 to arrive in Daytona for practices. After a few days of final rehearsals, they will compete in preliminaries and then find out if they will perform on the beach for the finals.

“Our theme this year is ‘Fighter,’ which has a lot of meaning to us,” McCulloh, junior in event management, said. “One of the girls on the team, her mom found out earlier this year that she had cancer. That was really hard for her, so our coach came up this idea for breast cancer awareness.”

The environment of the competition has become familiar to Ryerson, as she has been on the team since she started as a freshman. She and the squad have gone to Nationals for the past three years, placing in the top five each time. Despite the familiarity, though, the nerves are always there.

“The pressure starts before we even step on the stage,” Ryerson said. “We’ve already seen our competition rehearse. You get those jitters, watching them from behind the curtain and then you have to go on next.”

For Ryerson and McCulloh, returning to Daytona beach this year meant the squad working together and trying their best.

“Each year, we are trying to be better than the year before,” McCulloh said. “The way our team works together is unbelievable. They are all so respectful to each other and are so cohesive.”

Preparing the squad starts even before the school year begins, with them going to camp. In order to qualify for Nationals, they need to get a pass during camp. The squad learns an entire routine in only a few days and must perform it well enough to show they can compete in Nationals.

During the fall semester, the squad performs at football games and competes in a state competition. All of this leads up to learning their Nationals routine in January, while continuing to perform at basketball games.

“With talking phyiscally, we have to work on endurance from day one,” said Kelley Jamison, a senior in agriculture education. “When we get closer to Nationals, it’s always about drilling it over and over.”

Jamison has been part of the Dance Team since her freshman year. She explains that mentality, specifically motivation and positivity, are also essential all year.

“Along with being physically strong, you have to be mentally strong coming in,” McCulloh said. “If your mind’s not in it, you’re not going to get through all this. Being positive can turn that all around.”

While they practice and perform, the squad keeps to a positive and encouraging atmosphere. Everything going on in their lives is put on hold, and each member concentrates on being there for each other as they practice their Nationals routine.

“We are there to motivate each other,” Jamison said. “Any criticism is only to help, not to be negative.”

While these three women have competed in Nationals before, freshman members have never taken to a stage quite like this.

Callie Henning, a freshman in Kinesiology, joined the team in August and is motivated to not let inexperience stop her from doing her best in the competition.

“For us freshmen, it is intimidating,” Henning said. “We know how well the team did last year, but that means we try harder.”

The freshman members have an extra meeting on Fridays to practice their Nationals routine, which Henning said shows their determination to make this year special for their squad.

“We know we can strive to make first place and show our pride for Iowa State,” Hennings said.

From the beginning of the season, both Ryerson and McCulloh said they knew they had something special this year in their squad. The squad spends 11 or more hours each week together, which they believe forms a strong bond between them all.

“I’m so proud of every single girl on the team,” McCulloh said. “These are some of our best friends. Coming to practice is my favorite part of my day. Everyone has done such a great job, and we couldn’t have asked for a better year.”

Gold Squad will perform their routine for Nationals on Sunday in the East Gym of State Gym at 1:00 p.m. Students and the public are encouraged to attend.