BATON ROUGE – The LSU Tiger Girls captured its fourth national title when they won the Hip Hop Division at the UCA/UDA National College Championships.
The title is the second for LSU’s Tiger Girls in the past three years.
With a Michael Jackson-inspired routine choreographed by Carsen Rowe and Tiger Girls alum Samantha McFadden, LSU’s Tiger Girls scored a 97.2 to win first place in the D1A Hip Hop Division.
The Tiger Girls will perform their national championship routine at halftime of the LSU men’s basketball game against Texas A&M on Saturday and then during pregame of the LSU women’s game on Sunday. The Tiger Girls will perform their jazz routine during pregame next Thursday when No. 10 LSU hosts top-ranked South Carolina.
LSU’s routine has since gone viral on social media and has inspired dancers across the globe to remember the classic fundamentals of hip hop. LSU’s national championship dance featured a “locking section” choreographed by Nathan Cherry and Geovanna Bortoleto.
According to the LSU coaches, the staff wanted to think outside the box and bring back some original hip hop styles to set them apart. It worked as their near perfect score was far and away the best routine during the competition.
“One of our goals this year was to re-claim our title and to be undeniably us,” head coach Kandace Hale said. “As much as our team is rich in tradition, we always try to push the envelope during competition season. My team is never afraid to try something new and be pushed in different styles. As a coach it’s important for me to give opportunities for my athletes to grow in their craft and it’s not always just about a routine. Our choreographers stand by this too and we work well together.”
The Tiger Girls placed third nationally in the jazz division a long-awaited goal that was reached by the group.
“We brought something different to the competition with a new choreographer and Louisiana native Kristin Daniel,” Hale said. “The team earned a bronze medal, a first in school history, and couldn’t be more excited to represent LSU.”
The Tiger Girls, coached by Hale and assisted by Londyn Daniel, consist of 23 athletes representing 10 states.
“Our team prides themselves on having a strong team culture, hard work and dedication,” Hale said.
In addition to the Tiger Girls’ showing at the national competition, the LSU Cheerleaders had its first top five finish in a decade in the traditional competition category at the UCA College National Championships in Orlando.
The traditional routine category allows for teams to perform a 2-minute, 30-second routine consisting of their most pyramids, baskets, stunts, and tumbling. The LSU Cheerleaders also finished eighth nationally in the gameday division where they performed the LSU fight song, a sideline chant, and a timeout routine.
“The team represented LSU by bringing the Death Valley game day energy to the arena in Orlando,” head coach Maddie Parten said.
“We set a goal to improve our placement in the traditional competition category and get a top five placement. We wrote it down in November and then in January we achieved that goal. We knew it would take great improvement from where we had been, but we knew it was what we wanted to do to set LSU Cheerleading back on course to win a national championship in the years ahead. We are excited to see what the future holds.”
The LSU Tiger Girls claim the title of 2024 #UDAnationals DIA Hip Hop 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 with their Michael Jackson inspired routine! 🏆🐯 pic.twitter.com/PAk9FYh1Pg
— Varsity Spirit (@VarsitySpirit) January 15, 2024