River Forest, Ill. - The Concordia University Chicago (CUC) Cougars dance team had a fantastic season, with their most winningest season under the direction of Head Coach Dirvelys Allen.

A Few Words from Coach Allen in the Preseason

"From the beginning of the recruitment phase for the 24-25 rookie and returning class we knew and expected to have a team of athletes that all were equipped with the same mentality. We were starting the season with athletes that had outstanding work ethic, were determined, had excellent dance team experience, and our competitive roster that was technically trained. We had prepared, thoughtful and talented captains and a returning team committed to fostering a strong culture. When we started learning, and mastering the competitive routines we were all on the same page about what we wanted, and that was undeniable."

Season Recap

The first competition of the season was at the 72nd Annual Concordia Invitational Tournament (CIT) where the team competed against three other teams, Concordia Wisconsin, Concordia Nebraska, and Concordia Ann Arbor. With a final score of 57.70, the Cougars made history by taking first place for the first time ever. Not only was first place a huge show of the program's growth, but they scored seven points higher than their performance in the previous year. With a collective 25.4 points, the Cougars earned their highest marks in performance impression, closely followed by their uniformity score of 25.2. Strong formations and great floor usage helped them impress all three officials and clinch their first-place victory.

"We were aiming to make it clear that we were the team to win in all aspects at CIT. We knew the other teams were working hard and had great talent, so we were relentless in our stamina building, motion precision and uniformity. As a coach from day one of the season I saw it for us, and as we grew more strong I became more eager and increased my focus to bring different ways to grow the routine and improve athlete readiness. For CIT, I believe our athletes across all levels gave their best even on days they were tired. Our team had superior focus, discipline and desire to push together. We propelled each other forward and when we won it was a full team win, a full team joy-filled moment." - Coach Allen

Just shy of a month later, the Cougars hosted the Cougar Winter Collegiate Dance Invite. They competed well in the Team Performance category where they scored 63.7 points and placed first. The team also found success in the Pom category where they scored 62.7 points and placed second. Fatima Martinez (St. Clair Shores, Mich.), Cienna Reed (Milan, Ill.), and Ella Cook (Cicero, N.Y.) also had solo performances in this competition, where all three Cougars medaled. Martinez placed sixth with a score of 52.43, while Reed and Cook took second and first where Reed had a score of 57.07 and Cook took gold with a score of 58.53. 

"Ella's technique and masterful storytelling was something well highlighted and executed in her piece. She is a champion and her win was earned in her choreography, showmanship and technical execution. We were all very proud of her. Her technique, presence and performance quality is undeniable but her storytelling was exceptional this competitive season.

Cienna Reed is a master of hip hop, her gift is indisputable, her routine was commanding and creative. She exhibited authentic hip hop technical elements making it look easy. The most outstanding thing about Cienna's piece was that she was versatile and her competition piece had unique movement. Her win showed that hip hop carries difficulty and creativity just any other style does.

To have them both earn the top two spots was a huge team win for us!" - Coach Allen

About three weeks later, the Cougars hosted their second competition of the season, the Cougar Spring Collegiate Dance Invite, where the team swept several categories. The Cougars took first in both the Pom and Team Performance, scoring 63.35 and 66.8 points, respectively. With these two first place finishes, the Cougars were named the overall champion with a score of 63.35. Soloist Giselle Espinoza Carrera (Cicero, Ill.) had a great performance and placed eighth with a score of 53.77.

Taking a break from hosting, the Cougars travelled to Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) to compete in the MSOE Midwest Invite. The team only performed in the Pom category where they had strong performances, but fell short of placing in the top three. Cook was the lone soloist to place and also earned a spot as an invite All-Star. 

Following this competition, the Cougars took time to prepare for nationals where the preliminary round was set for April 10th.  

Heading to Florida, the Cougars competed in the National Dance Association (NDA) College Dance Nationals, the largest dance competition in the United States, in the preliminaries in both Pom and Team Performance. In Pom, the team had no deductions while scoring a perfect ten in their collegiate image category and scoring high in performance impression and staging. With a score of 82.57, the team would head to the NDA Pom finals for the first time in program history. Taking the stage for the finals, the Cougars had another performance with no deductions and finished placing fourth in the nation in Pom. 

After their performance at NDA, the team concluded their season with several first place finishes as well as top performances at CIT and the Cougar Invitationals, as well as the programs first ever performance in the NDA finals. 

Coach Allen on the Season as a Whole

"This past season was a joy to have all the makings of a great team, a strong first year class, fearless returning athletes, wonderful captains, and dedicated coaches all with the same mentality. We feel proud of the trust our athletes gave each other and the coaching staff. Four moments I will never forget were running into our waiting space at CIT carrying the trophy above my head walking into the classroom then yelling "Guys! We won CIT!" And we unanimously cheered and proceeded to hug each other and jump up and down. At nationals, I also can't forget hearing "Advancing to Pom Division 3, Concordia University Chicago!" and we squealed with joy as a team and our families that travelled to Daytona. Finally, lining up backstage as a team to head onto the stage for final awards night as nationals, they held hands as they walked and when asked what University do you represent hearing one of our captains say "Concordia University Chicago", was all priceless and a deeply emotional moment. We worked hard all year and our team was all in, all year, even the hard moments they were truly a team. Finally, a personal moment was a huge team huddle hug/prayer, given to me upon my return to practice after needing to be out for a personal matter. Feeling valued and supported by the team, and having thoughtful prayer led by Ella Herbig that gave me the strength I needed that day to persist will forever be remembered. My heart will always remember 24-25 of CUC dance."

Special Thank You from Coach Allen

"A special gratitude goes out to our Graduate Assistant Coach, Madison Daoust and our Assistant Coach Jazlyn Rivera for their work, commitment and dedication to our team rain or shine. We are blessed to have such wonderful coaches support our team. I would be remiss, if I didn't mention that this year was possible because of them too!"

Graduating Seniors

The Cougar dance team graduated three seniors after this season. Espinoza Carrera, Martinez, and Natalie Gallardo were huge contributors to the success of the team this season. 

 

"We feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to see Natalie Gallardo, Fatima Martinez, and Giselle Espinoza grow into future leaders during their four years at Concordia. Post-COVID, they were an integral part of CUC Dance's growth," Coach Allen said. "Natalie's innate ability to bring our team together was a blessing; we saw it in her from day one. Her optimism and kind, easy-going approach made us better each year. I do not doubt that she has a bright future coming her way. Fatima is a change agent, a thoughtful leader even in her younger years on CUC Dance.  She was committed, reliable, and inspiring. Her ability to inspire others to step up to adversity while being humble about her incredible skill are a few of the qualities we will miss most about her. Giselle has served as our resident teacher; Her gift in teaching is something that had a deep impact on our team. We will miss her ability to be fierce and take on any challenge, her gift for choreography mastery, and the way she led with full commitment will be missed. All three captains leave a mark on our program, and we are a better team because of each of them. We know their future is bright; these three are go-getters fully prepared to succeed. We will forever cheer them on in life."

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Impactful Returners

The Cougars will return a large portion of their team including junior captain, Makayla Knutson. Also returning will be Cook and Reed who contributed to strong team performances as well as found success in the solos. 

Highlights

In case you forgot, we most definitely killed it this year! First ever first place finish at CIT AND first ever finish at NDA finals?! Take a look back at the highlights with us!
🔗: https://t.co/aCQnruXI5o pic.twitter.com/QLyMTB1mTy

— CUC Dance, Cheer&STUNT (@CUCDanceCheer) June 12, 2025

To stay up to date on all things CUC dance, check out cucougars.com.