Miami University
U.S. National Championships (Collegiate)
Miami Collegiate Skating Team Wins U.S. National Championships
2/26/2005 12:00:00 AM | Synchronized Skating
Feb. 26, 2005
by Laura Fawcett and Kelly Hodge for usfsa.org
Miami University RedHawks Return to the Top of the Collegiate Podium
LOWELL, Mass.- The top 10 collegiate teams in the nation made the ice their battlefield Saturday afternoon, with fight songs, team colors and cheering echoing through the arena. The Miami University RedHawks reclaimed the title they lost last year with a stirring performance set to music by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy.
Miami's skillful performance epitomized the tremendous improvement in collegiate skating evident even over the last year. Team after team took the ice to show off sharp skating skills and innovative choreography. It's obvious that after years on club teams, top synchronized skaters are choosing to continue their careers at the collegiate level, and the possibilities appear endless.
Big Bad Voodoo is known for its fun music, and Miami kept with the theme, interpreting the melodies with speed and energy. The RedHawks' opening circle had twizzles and footwork, and their first intersection showed quick turn-throughs. Other highlights included forward outside spirals in two lines, two circles that blended to one with back shoot-the-ducks, and an intersection without a center point.
"It was amazing -- the skate of a lifetime," said sophomore Danielle Bacon. "It was just a great feeling getting off the ice. Everything was perfectly perfect."
Teammate Lisa Headen, a senior, agreed.
`Every leg was there, every head was there," said Headen, who is planning to attend graduate school and is undecided about her skating future.
After losing the title last year, Bacon and Headen said there was a renewed determination to come back even stronger.
"We were a lot more motivated and determined to do what we needed to do," Bacon said.
Miami has always been the dominant force in collegiate skating, winning six of the previous eight contested events. This one makes No. 7, but the other teams are inching closer every year.
Last year Western Michigan stepped out with its first collegiate title, just months after learning the school was dropping synchronized as a varsity sport. New head coach Carrie Brown said that despite that change, everything has been business as usual for the Broncos.
"We train exactly as we always have, maintain all the same conditioning elements and demands," Brown said. "The only thing that has changed is that we pay for it now. We want to maintain the high level."
Western Michigan was the last team to skate, and its "Little Buddha" program had a few bobbles, including a collision in a back lunge intersection and a bump during a circle transition. But the Broncos overall difficulty and presentation shined through those mistakes.
"They felt they were aggressive and presented the program well," said Brown of her skaters. "They were happy they skated with energy. This week has been beyond our expectations."
Michigan State finished in the top three for the first time since 2002 by collecting the bronze for a routine set to disco music. The Spartans turned out one of the most entertaining programs of the event, and included a three-line back hydroblade, and laybacks and split jumps as movements in isolation.
"They were amazing, simply amazing," said coach Cheryl Karlon. "They just love the program and I think that transfers to the ice."
The University of Michigan Wolverines won the pewter medal with highlights such as a block with forward outside spirals into four hydroblade lines. They also added a back lunge intersection, box intersection with turns and a three-spoke wheel with spread eagles.
"They had a clean skate," said coach Lisa Lueking. "They put everything out there and didn't hold back. We really had nothing to lose so we went for it."
Players Mentioned
